Iris
by BlueAmethystRose
Summary: Sequel to "In the End", taking place about 13 years later. -rated M for language and angsty and sexual themes, some OCxOC pairings, yuri- Sorry for the long long wait. Something huge came up.
1. Author's Note

_Alright, I'm finally back in business! It took a little longer than I'd hoped, but I'm back into fanfiction writing for a while. This time I'm experimenting with a sequel to my last fic - "In the End". So... if you didn't read that one, then I suggest doing so or else you're not going to know what's going on. This isn't going to be a songfic like the last one, but I might incorporate something of the sort. Maybe. And as you've noticed, I have a whole page dedicated to writing my author's note as opposed to putting all this right before the first chapter. I like to keep my fans on the edge for a while before the good stuff starts happening._

_First order of business: the__** M-rating warning**__. This fic, like the last one, is going to deal with very realistic themes such as alcohol usage and sexual things and all the stuff that makes my fanfics... well... full of awesomeness. It might have less suicidal themes to it though, which I suppose is good._

_Secondly, my __**disclaimer**__. I don't own any of the Pokemon merchandise, cartoon show, videogames, etc. They belong to Nintendo and those other people over in Japan, not me._

_And last but not least, my __**copyright statement**__. This is MY work and mine alone. No one is to use these ideas on their website, for monetary gain or otherwise, or anywhere else it could be distributed. And NO PLAGIARIZING (grr)._

_I suppose this is the point where I leave you guys on your own. Enjoy (It should be up later on tonight)._

_-Withered Rose-_


	2. Supergirl

_Dear Mom,_

_I finally got my third badge today! Kane still hasn't evolved yet, but it should be soon. He's getting so much stronger. I never knew there'd be so much to see once I got started on my journey. I've caught enough pokemon for a full team of six. I can show you sometime. Professor Oak is going to take care of them while I go visit you for Christmas. That's in less than three weeks! I got you something extra-special. Are we having Richard over for Christmas this year? I'm really starting to like him. He's like... the father I never knew I guess. And he tells really great stories._

_I'll be heading out to Celadon City in a couple days to come see you. Love you lots!_

_-Iris_

Snow is an odd thing. It's an absolutely beautiful marvel to witness - to see the soft white flakes floating down from seemingly nowhere and clinging to everything in sight. But it's also very ominous. It muffles any sound within miles and the only thing that can be heard is the _crunch, crunch, crunch_ of footsteps treading through the frozen cotton that blanketed the earth. It seems as though everything dies when winter hits.

One girl in particular, fourteen-year-old Iris, was trekking through the snow with thick, fur-lined boots. She had always been told she looked exactly like her mother. A mirror image almost. If the straight brown hair wasn't an obvious resemblance, then the bright emerald green eyes definitely were. But she'd always questioned why the "mother" she lived with looked nothing like her. Reddish hair and blue eyes were _her_ most prominent features and the young girl's father was nowhere in sight. For years she asked about her heritage, only to have the question shrugged off as if it were an uncomfortable topic to touch upon. After years of wondering, she'd eventually forgotten everything about it and just lived life as it came - and what a fast-paced life it was for her. Born in one of the biggest cities in all of Kanto, it was no wonder that the young girl had developed an adventurous, boisterous attitude that came with the rushing city life.

_"I want to fly"_ she'd always told her friends. _"I want to know what it's like to have wings."_ They could never see the reasoning behind these words and often laughed at the girl, calling her crazy for thinking such things. But even living the city life was too monotonous for her, so it was no wonder she dreamed of ways to escape. And it wasn't like her wishes were too farfetched. She'd seen so many trainers with pokemon that could soar through the skies, carrying their companions to wherever it is they wanted to go, and Iris envied them immensely.

Upon turning ten years of age, her mother finally brought her to the small town of Pallet to receive her very first pokemon. Her immediate choice was the fire-type Charmander after finding out that it would eventually evolve into an enormous, dragon-like pokemon with the ability to fly. However, evolution was slow-going at the moment, especially since Iris took constant breaks from her pokemon journey to visit her mother over the holidays and whenever she began getting lonely. Christmas was coming up, so she would be staying at her house in Celadon City for at least a week before setting out again.

"Are you okay back there Kane?" Iris asked her companion, stopping to turn around and make sure he didn't get stuck in another snow bank.

"Char-char!" the little orange pokemon called from a few yards back. He was attempting to hop across the blanket of snow on all fours, only to be hindered as he fell through it over and over again. Iris watched as he made a great leap out of the snow and back onto the top of the snow. He hobbled carefully toward his friend, then fell into the snow again. She laughed, then went over and picked him up.

"We're never gonna get to where we're going at this pace" she said, cradling the Charmander as she continued to walk toward the Celadon City department store. They made it to the front doors and Kane immediately hopped out of Iris' arms and wagged his tail excitedly. The two of them made their way past countless people moving to and fro in the colossal building and up many steps that led to the roof. When they finally made it to the top, Iris set the bag down she had on her back - the one she always made sure to bring with her everywhere she went.

The view was simply spectacular. The Celadon City skyline, she thought, was the greatest sight to see whether you were a tourist or a resident. The entire city, from every house to building to mansion, was in plain view from atop the department store. Some aerial pokemon were always circling the buildings high above the clouds, crying out with many echoing screeches and trills and caws.

"This looks like a great picture opportunity" Iris said with a giggle. She found it amusing how people always assumed she were some sort of photographer when she said this. Rather than pulling out a camera from her bag, however, she took out a sketch pad and a pencil. Some curious onlookers watched her stand dangerously close to the edge where the people below looked like tiny ants. An enormous blue bird pokemon caught her eye and she immediately began to draw what she could see of it before it spiraled up and out of sight into the puffy white clouds. It seemed to camouflage into the sky itself. Another similar one had landed on a building relatively close, preening its cottony feathers without even acknowledging the strange girl on the roof nearby. It flew away just as she'd finished quickly sketching it. They were rough outlines, but good enough to capture the moment.

"Look at those Kane!" Iris said in awe. "Someday you'll be able to fly like them. But you'll be big and strong, so you can carry me over the city. That's what I want more than anything - to fly with you." Kane walked to the edge of the roof, hopped up on the ledge, and looked out at the horizon and at the many bird pokemon. Their soft, feathery wings looked just like the clouds themselves, which were showing signs of a potential snowstorm.

"We should get home soon" said Iris, breaking a long stretch of silence. Kane nodded, still gazing. "Come on. I bet Mom made us stew." The two of them went back down the stairs and out of the building just as it had begun to snow. Iris carried Kane over the snow to make the trip shorter, and soon enough they were standing in front of their house.

The house Iris had grown up in was relatively small, but very cozy and always neat. There was an old wooden swing on the back porch that overlooked an enormous yard, but she'd always tried to avoid this part of the house at all costs. She could remember an odd dream she had of a young girl, with reddish blond hair and blue, tear-filled eyes, who looked strikingly like her mother. There she sat crying on the swing that hung from rusting chains, playing a guitar next to some sort of pokemon. But the dream never allowed her to see what that pokemon was. It was always just some misshapen blurry figure. And it was always a different color every time, so she couldn't even begin to guess. The dreams always bothered her somehow, though they didn't seem to have any meaning at all. The swing wasn't even the same as the one at her house - it looked like it was hanging outside an old dilapidated house on a dusty dirt road in the middle of nowhere.

The moment Iris walked into the house and took her boots off, a voice called from the kitchen. "I'm making stew if that's okay" it said.

"Alright Mom" Iris called back. Kane went into the living room to curl up in a ball on the couch while Iris went into the kitchen. A tall woman with reddish hair almost past her bottom was gathering up some vegetables from a cupboard above a pearly white counter. The counter, along with every other thing in the house, was always spotless. The woman had always had a knack for cleaning incessantly nearly every day, even if the smallest thing was out of place, so the house was always extremely tidy and usually smelled like fresh flowers.

"Looks like a storm's about to hit" her mother answered in a quiet voice. "This might be the last time you can go out. I've been watching the news and they say it might get pretty bad."

"At least I'm stuck here with you instead of in some random hotel back in Vermilion" Iris responded as she offered to help cut up some potatoes.

"That is true."

It didn't take long for the two of them to make lunch and when they did, they set the table and poured generous servings into three bowls. Iris helped Kane up onto a chair, then took a seat next to her mother. Lunch was eaten in silence as it always had been, even when Iris was in a bubbly mood and eager to share with her mother the events of that morning. Her mother always seemed to be deep in thought every day. She stared off into the distance a lot when she had time to herself and there was an almost lonely air around her. She never went outside unless it was to sit beside the grave of her old pokemon friend that had passed away years ago. The grave stone was engraved with the name "Sage" and the area around it was always decorated with flowers. Iris knew better than to question it, since it seemed to be a very personal thing for the woman, so she continued to watch in silence day by day as something unseen seemed to rip apart her soul.


	3. Rhythm of Love

_A/N: This fic is going to move at a faster pace than the last one just to keep it moving. It shouldn't be too bad if I do that. Eventually it'll slow down once the main plot falls into place. Of course I'm just experimenting here since I'm not actually sure of where I want to go with this. But it should turn out pretty good. Anyway, enjoy._

The snow that relentlessly fell on Celadon City eventually piled up so high over the course of just a few days that no one could get out of their houses. There had to have been at least three feet of it and it was still falling without signs of stopping anytime soon. Some old abandoned houses eventually collapsed from the sheer weight of the snow and the streets were yet to be cleared out for people to walk through. Stores closed much earlier than usual and employees were given the option of staying home if there wasn't any way to get to work, so the only thing to do was to stay indoors and hope the snow would stop. Among these people were Iris and her mother, who spent the days baking cookies and stringing lights on the Christmas tree.

_Knock knock knock._

"Who in the world would be coming to our house in this weather?" Iris' mother asked, putting one last bulb on the tree and making her way to the front door of the house. Upon opening it, a tall brown-haired man stood covered in snow. He shook off the snow and walked inside, pulling Iris' mother into a warm hug.

"I haven't seen you in months Rose" he said, looking her over with a smile. "Where's Iris?"

"Here I am" the girl said as she came into the living room. She immediately gave the man a huge bear hug.

"I didn't expect you to come in this weather Richard" the woman named Rose said. "How did you get here?"

With a hearty laugh, Richard responded, "I dug my way over here."

"All the way from Lavender Town?" asked Iris as the three of them took a seat on the couch. Kane was in his usual spot by himself on the adjacent armchair, curled up in a little orange ball.

"Actually I flew here" said Richard, crossing his legs and propping his feet up on the coffee table. He was the only person Rose would ever allow to do this. "My Spearow evolved recently, so I figured I'd make use of it… Do I smell cookies?"

"Yeah, we just put 'em in the oven" Iris said. "Oh, I didn't tell you yet! I got my third badge a few weeks ago."

"Congrats kiddo" Richard said with a smile. "Who knows? Maybe someday you'll become a gym leader."

Iris nodded and smiled, laying back on the couch and listening to some stories the man had to share about his own pokemon journey. He spoke of far away towns and cities in other regions and of all the foreign pokemon that could be found there, and of the countless gym battles he had to endure to win badges. He described rare and exotic pokemon he had caught that Iris had never even heard of during her four years on the road to the Indigo Plateau. She wished to travel that far some day and obtain all the badges that were out there, how ever many there may be. It compelled her to know just how much was out there for her to see and do and she was more than thankful that she went to get her pokemon trainer's license when she did.

Richard's stories were always so fascinating and being almost 45 years of age, he had a lot to tell. His parents had always called him a "late bloomer", as he didn't begin his pokemon journey until he was about 20 years old. From there he traveled all over the continent; not only collecting badges and pokemon, but learning all there was to know about the world. He met many people and saw many things, and from this he became a very wise and loving fatherly figure in Iris' eyes.

"Tell you what," began Richard, speaking to Iris, "If you manage to get all your badges for this region, I'll bring you out to the Hoenn or Sinnoh regions to show you what it's like there. It truly is amazing, and there are so many more pokemon out there that the pokedex you have can't even identify."

"What badge did you recently get? I forgot which one you said" said Iris.

"The Plain Badge, which is in Goldenrod City." Richard said, and then he chuckled. "I remember right after that, a young lady challenged me to a battle and I actually lost. Just a spur-of-the-moment thing. Funny thing though… She looked a bit like you Iris. Green eyes, brown hair, all that. But she looked much older, maybe in her late thirties. She has a pretty tough Nidoqueen that just blew away my pokemon. I have to say, I was shocked."

A strange expression swept over Rose's face and she seemed to be thinking deeply, then she said suddenly, "I'm going to check on the cookies." She got up quickly and went to the kitchen without looking at anyone else in the room. Richard watched her walk out of the room, then looked at Iris.

"Did I… say something wrong?" he asked, confused.

Iris shook her head. "You know how she is" she said. "She looks like she feels more and more depressed every day. Maybe she misses her pokemon that died? You know, the one buried in the backyard under the oak tree."

"I don't think it's that" Richard said, putting his feet on the floor and sitting up. "She seems lonely, as in... she's looking for companionship."

"You don't have to explain it, I know what you mean" Iris said. "She never told me who my dad is. I've never met him. I want to, but every time I ask it's like she's bothered by it and she changes the subject."  
Richard stood up from the couch and stretched, cracking his back. "Perhaps it's just a part of her past that she's not yet ready to share" he said.

"It's a part of _my_ past too!" Iris said angrily, springing up from her seat on the couch.

"Cookies are done" Rose called from the kitchen. With a sigh, Iris walked out of the room. Kane, picking up on the word "cookie", uncurled himself and yawned. He looked up at the tall, thin man and simply blinked, then hopped off the couch and headed straight for the kitchen. Richard followed silently.

"Alright, here is a few for you Iris" said Rose as she handed her daughter some cookies with little snowmen on them. "And here Kane, you can-" She was cut off abruptly as everything around her was shrouded in darkness. The only light that remained was Kane's flaming tail.

"Great, the fucking power went out" she spat, looking at the ghostly faces around her.

"I know where there's some candles" Iris said. She made her way to a drawer on the counter nearby, rummaged through it, then pulled out a few candles and some matches. She led the way through the house toward the living room as they'd always did whenever the power went out, lighting candles and placing them in random spots to light a path. When she was done, they all went into the living room and sat down on the couch. Kane took his usual seat on the armchair. For a moment they merely sat in silence, gazing at the dancing shadows all over the walls that were cast by the light of the Charmander's tail. It seemed to bring a sort of comfort to the room, making them all forget about the ominous darkness that surrounded them.

Richard spoke up against the silence, which seemed to have been making him uncomfortable. "Good thing no one's afraid of the dark, huh?" Iris and Rose gave a half-hearted laugh, still staring at the flame light. The Christmas tree stood in a far-off corner where there would be plenty of room for presents underneath, and its multi-colored lights would have been an excellent addition to the atmosphere if the power hadn't gone out.

The four of them all jumped when a rattling sound could be heard coming from the kitchen. No one dared move and for well over a minute, there was nothing but silence as they tried to listen closely to whatever it was they were hearing. It sounded like someone was trying to get into the house through the back door, which caused Kane to jump into Iris' lap for protection. Richard stood up and picked up a candle from a nearby bookshelf.

"I'm going to check it out" he said. His voice was slightly shaky, but he forced himself to remain calm.

"I'll go with you" said Iris, standing up next to him. Kane was plopped back down on the couch. "Stay here Kane, please."

"Alright, but stay close to me" the man responded. "Rose, you stay here. I'll be back." The woman obeyed as she watched the two of them move toward the back of the house until all that could be seen was the little orb of orange light from the candle. This, too, disappeared as it turned the corner in the kitchen and headed for the back door.

By now the sound had stopped and all that could be heard was the howling of the bitter winter wind that seemed to shake the whole house. It was so dark and stormy outside that it was almost impossible to see out the window. The only thing to do was open the door, which was just what Richard was planning to do. He gave the candle to Iris and told her to stay behind him, and then he reluctantly approached the door with a trembling, outstretched hand. He firmly grasped the doorknob, took a deep breath, and threw the door open.

Nothing.

The only evidence of intrusion that was left behind was a set of footprints - two of which were imprinted firmly in front of the door and a pair of them leading off to the left and around the house from there. Richard peered carefully into the pitch-black curtain buffeted by thick snow, but he could see no more than a few feet in front of him. Iris remained behind him, candle in hand, and tried to see into the stormy black void as well. Her vision was no better. A clattering sound from somewhere outside caused the two of them to jump again and Iris nearly dropped the candle. It sounded close, as if it were right above their heads.

"On the roof!" Iris gasped, looking up at a spot from where a small pile of snow fell. Upon more careful inspection, a set of long imprints could be seen in the snow on the roof as if someone tried to climb it. There was another clattering sound, and another pile of snow fell from above.

"Who's up there??" Richard called into the darkness. No answer. He reached for his belt where six poke balls were attached and grabbed one. In one swift movement, he threw the ball and called out, "Go Zangoose!" In a flash of bright light, a pokemon emerged from within the confines of the ball. It stood about four feet high and had fur as white as the snow slashed with zigzagging red markings. "Get up on the roof and see what the hell's up there" ordered Richard. The Zangoose gave a quick nod and in one graceful leap, it made it up onto the roof. Iris had never seen anything like it before and she would have taken more interest in learning about the foreign pokemon had it not been for the dilemma at hand. Its claws dug into the tiles of the roof without damaging them too much as it climbed up and out of sight.

"Get the fuck off me!" grunted a voice from up above. A figure was thrown off the roof and landed in a huge snow bank some yards away. It got up uneasily, revealing itself as a man dressed in a trenchcoat and a hat that obscured some of his face.

"What are you doing here??" Richard asked as the Zangoose jumped down from the roof and landed next to him. It growled and shot a menacing glare at the intruder, who ignored the threat.

"I'm here on personal business" the man said, stepping out of the snow bank and regaining him composure.

"Take your business elsewhere" said Richard in a stern voice. "This is your only warning."

"Fuck you old man, you have nothing against Team Rocket."

"Try me" was the short response.

The Team Rocket member immediately released one of his own pokemon, which was an equally intimidating-looking Typhlosion. It released flames angrily from its bristly fur and without waiting for an order, it leapt at the Zangoose. The two of them tussled in the snow like two large cats, biting and clawing and hissing viciously. Some spots of blood could be seen staining the snow around them, but in the tangle of bodies it was difficult to tell whose it was. The Typhlosion was down for a moment after suffering a Headbutt to the stomach, but recovered quickly and retaliated with a blast of fire. The Zangoose dodged, then swiped relentlessly at its opponent with thick claws. With equally adept reflexes, the latter ducked and swerved and rolled under every one of the attacks easily. It took down the Zangoose with one strong full-body Tackle and it didn't get back up.

"This is fucking stupid" the Rocket said, "Don't wait for the damn thing to recover, go after the trainer!!" With lightning speed, the large flaming pokemon charged at Richard. He had no time to react as he was Tackled to the ground. The attacker jumped back to give itself some room, standing over the fallen man, and then prepared for its final assault. Flames built up in the back of its gaping mouth, swirling and hissing and steaming, and dark smoke blew from its nostrils. Its lungs expanded, ready to hurl a fatal ball of ember, before its actions were suddenly hindered when Kane came out of nowhere and Tackled the beast. It wasn't even enough to move it from its place, but it was distracted from Richard long enough so he could pick himself up off the ground. Claws swiped blindly at the Charmander, who ran and hopped all around the Typhlosion to dodge it.

"Get it with Dragon Claw!" Iris called out to her companion. In one huge swipe, the Typhlosion was gouged deeply by Kane's claws and it fell to the ground. Its weakened and injured body twitched as the Rocket member returned it. With one last angry glare, the man said "This isn't the last time you'll see me", then simply turned and ran into the darkness. Rose appeared in the doorway, looking thoroughly confused as she watched the Rocket member run off.

"What a coward" Richard said, brushing the snow off his clothes. "I have to say, it's a good thing you taught Kane to use Dragon Claw. Certainly helps in these sorts of situations. Too bad the bastard ran for it. I hope he's not recruiting more-"

"Kane, what's wrong??" Iris said, rushing to her pokemon's side. He seemed very winded, stooping over and panting heavily. His entire body began to glow white and it seemed to be morphing - evolving. Iris watched in amazement as his body turned into nothing but a silhouette that twisted and turned and rippled and grew. Its shape finally changed and when the process was over, Kane was a newly-evolved Charmeleon. Iris hugged the pokemon, not knowing what else to do or what to say.

"Someone's going to have to explain to me what happened out here" said Rose. She shivered in the cold air. "Come on in guys. We can make some hot cocoa and relax tonight."

The four of them all moved back into the living room where Iris and Richard told the story of the man who tried to break into the house and the battle that ensued. Kane didn't seem much different at all, though he did look uncomfortable in his new body. Over the few hours of talking and laughing and simply enjoying the quiet winter night, Rose and Richard seemed to be developing some sort of bond. Richard, having gathered up the courage to do so, had his arm wrapped around Rose's slender shoulders and his eyes never left the woman's face. He looked as though he were contemplating the best time to kiss her, which is why Iris decided to go to bed. She understood the situation well and decided to say goodnight right then and there and head upstairs to her bedroom with Kane, leaving the couple relaxing on the couch.

"She sure is something" Richard said admiringly, watching the girl make her way up the stairs. "She acts like she's 20 sometimes."

"She must get it from me" said Rose. "I've always acted much older than I am. Mostly childhood incidences."

Richard didn't ask about it, but instead changed the subject. "So what is it you want for Christmas my dear?"

Rose laughed, then looked up into his eyes. "All I want is to not be lonely this Christmas. Not again."

"I've been over here every Christmas" said Richard. "Surely you can't be too lonely on the holidays."

"That's not what I meant Richard."

The two of them were silent as he admired the woman. Her eyes were simply captivating and he loved the way she always had her thick, wavy hair tied back and draped over her shoulder. His fingers ran through the soft hair, twirling and twisting it subconsciously as if mesmerized by it. The shirt she wore was low-cut, showing a small bit of cleavage, and her chest rose and fell with every breath. He often let his eyes drift here as well, but remained appropriate about it. He loved the pale, soft skin. He loved the slender curves. But the one thing he absolutely couldn't keep his mind, or his eyes, off of were her delicate pink lips. And in an instant, he found himself captured by these lips with his own without any words exchanged. The two bodies embraced and laid down on the couch, Rose on top of Richard, without interrupting the kiss at all. While this was going on, Iris sat on the top step and peered between the wooden rails at the scene. Kane crouched silently behind her and watched curiously, having seen the whole thing as did Iris.

"Come on Kane, it's getting late" Iris whispered, standing up, "and I'd rather not see the ending to this." They tiptoed back up the stairs and into Iris' room, where she shut the door behind her. She hoped this would be enough to muffle any sounds that happened to drift from the living room. However, she didn't seem too uncomfortable about the subject. Her mother had always seemed very lonely, but also showed signs of being attracted to Richard. As far as Iris knew, he was the only man Rose had ever fallen for. But that couldn't be true since he definitely wasn't her father. Iris sat down on the edge of the bed and ran her fingers roughly through her hair. All of this was very confusing to her.

"Char-charmeleon?" said Kane as he took a seat next to Iris.

"Life is too complicated sometimes" she said with a sigh. "You're lucky. You have no worries. I wish I could just... escape or something. I'd love to be able to just sprout some wings and fly away. That would be nice..." Her sentence was cut off as she yawned loudly, which made her decide that it was finally time for bed. She changed into her favorite silk nightgown, which was blue with little Pikachu on it, then tucked herself under a thick layer of blankets. Kane curled up on the end of the bed, the flame from his tail keeping him warm enough to not need any blankets. Iris said goodnight to him, then fell into a deep and very comfortable sleep.


	4. My Immortal

"How long are you going to stay up there?" called a voice from somewhere below. It broke through the silence, causing the woman to nearly spring out of her seat. Dead-looking green eyes moved slowly toward the source of the sound, which was a slightly heavy-set man with black curly hair.

"As long as I want to Trevor" came the defiant response. She felt no need to explain anything as she sat high up on the tree branch, watching the snowfall. Clouds were gathered thickly in the sky, soundlessly sprinkling the city with little white flakes. This was far better than being out in the rain where the constant pitter-patter of water hindered the clarity of thought.

"It's been years" Trevor said. "Don't you think it's time to finally let it go?" The woman was silent, paying more attention to the scenery from the treetops than to the voice that was interrupting the peaceful quiet. Eventually he left, stumbling a bit as he tried to walk over slippery rocks and roots blocking the path.

"It's not like you'd understand" she whispered to herself. She struggled to fight back a tear that threatened to fall, but to no avail. She sighed and leaned her head back against the rough bark of the thirty-foot tree that towered well over the relatively dwarf-like trees around it. True, it had been years, but that didn't mean that she was ready to move on. She constantly dreamed and daydreamed about the youthful face, the captivating blue eyes... It wouldn't have been a surprise if she found herself reaching out subconsciously to touch that warm and delicate skin. But if there were to be any chance at all of ever being able to talk to the younger woman again, if anything, there were many walls that had to be knocked down - of this Delilah knew. But she quickly shook the thought from her mind, not wanting to dwell too much on the past.

From her perch, she could see in the distance a tall and rocky plateau with a large building on it. It had an enormous pokeball-shaped glass roof and sliding doors where miniscule dots of people could be seen walking in and out. Today was the day the Pokemon League was open to trainers who were ready with their eight Kanto badges. And finally, after obtaining her eight badges, it was Delilah's time to challenge the Elite Four and become recognized by all of Kanto as a pokemon champion. More memories flooded back to her as she remembered another much less lonely time long before this, when Delilah had shared these goals of hers with someone else.

They sat high up off the ground on what seemed to be the tallest tree in all of Viridian Forest. The younger one, Rose, was absolutely terrified of being up so high, but was instantly calmed when Delilah threw a caring arm around her and held her close. It felt like nothing in the universe could harm her as they gazed at the distant plateau, enjoying the warmth of each other as the sun disappeared beyond the horizon for the night. Pink and orange streaked the clear blue sky like the perfect painting, and Delilah would forever remember the colors and the sounds and the smells. She pointed to the huge building that sat on the rocky cliff.

_"I want to go there,"_ she said, _"to the Pokemon League... Someday I wanna be good enough to become Champion."_

Rose was the only one she'd ever confided in like this, even in their tense and awkward stages of friendship. Delilah could see some potential, and something else she couldn't place, in the beautiful sixteen-year-old girl. Had it been love at the time? Delilah had always laughed at the idea of love at first sight and saw it as something that only happened to the most desperate of losers.

A sudden scratching sound from the base of the tree caused her to jump and jerk her head down to see what it was.

"Jade, what in the world...?" she began, and then she suddenly remembered why her faithful pokemon, a now fully-evolved Nidoqueen, came to get her. She didn't even realized until now that an hour had passed since Trevor left.

"Ah shit, I forgot!" said Delilah as she stood up recklessly, holding onto the main part of the tree with one hand. She had done this countless times before in her life and had no fear of falling whatsoever. "Catch me." She sat down and slid off in one fluid motion only to be caught by her companion waiting with muscular, outstretched arms. The trust between the two of them was immeasurable now, having traveled all over the continent and going through so many obstacles together. They hurried off to the south, where Viridian City stood with snow-covered rooftops and trees and even pathways - very few people had bothered shoveling around their house, let alone the streets that surrounded them. They came to a small house sandwiched between the Pokemon Center and another house. Trevor immediately met them at the door.

"You're going to be late" he said, handing her a backpack. "I figured you'd remember, seeing as you were looking right at the building while you were sitting up in that damn tree."

"My mind got caught up" Delilah said shortly.

"Well come on. Return Jade to her pokeball and you can hitch a ride on Dragonite with me."

"I'm really nervous Trevor..." Her cheeks flushed red, as if admitting to a weakness was the most embarrassing thing in the world.

"Which is why I'm coming with you." He pulled her into a hug. "I'm sure you'll do fine."

Trevor had been Delilah best friend ever since leaving Celadon City to continue her pokemon journey all those years ago, even long before that. He took her into his temporary home in Viridian City after finding out that she and her former lover were no longer living together. She'd never loved him and couldn't see herself doing that, but nonetheless their relationship had grown strong. He, having already battled and won in the Pokemon League, had helped her train for the very same goal. She was more than grateful for this because today she'd finally have the chance to become a pokemon champion. From there, she planned on becoming a gym trainer and finally settling down with that career.

The trip wasn't very long at all, seeing as the Indigo Plateau was right next door to Viridian City, but walking would have taken hours because of the dangerous rocky inclination. They dismounted the Dragonite as soon as they hit the ground and Trevor returned it to its pokeball. The Pokemon League building was so much more colossal than what Delilah had seen from Viridian Forest, and this was the first time she had ever seen the building up-close. The glass sliding doors opened almost soundlessly as she and Trevor stepped inside, kicking snow off their boots. Then Delilah led the way to the front desk where a woman with straight black hair and almost equally dark eyes sat in a comfy-looking leather chair.

"Welcome to the Pokemon League" she said in a very sweet, almost serene voice. "Are you registered for a battle with the Elite Four?"

"Yeah, I'm here for the 10:30 battle" said Delilah, trying to keep her voice calm even as her heart pounded in her chest. She gave the woman her name when asked and then sat down in the lobby to wait - the clock above the front desk read 9:54. Trevor went off on his own to a door that led to the stadium, where the crowd of thousands would be waiting anxiously. But Delilah was almost positive that she was much more anxious than all those people put together. She had to prove herself in front of them and either blow away the competition or fail miserably and embarrassingly. She passed the time stocking up on some well-needed medicines and healing items for the battle ahead of her. These went into her bag for later. Her stomach seemed to do back flips and it was worse when she looked up after becoming lost in her thoughts and saw that the clock said 10:22.

_I can do this, I can do this,_ she kept repeating in her head. She couldn't possibly let her confidence slip away now, not when she was so close to making her life-long dream a reality. This was what she had waited for over the many years dedicated to her pokemon journey and it would be completely pointless, and stupid for that matter, to just give up now. She had to keep breathing and stay calm.

"Did you hear about what's going on in Celadon City?" Delilah perked up, only to realize that no one was talking to her. The woman at the counter with the straight black hair was talking to the old man selling the healing items. Delilah looked at the floor and made it look like she was spacing out, but she was listening intently to the conversation that was going on in hushed voices.

"I haven't heard anything as of late" the old man croaked.

The woman leaned over the countertop so no one could overhear, though Delilah caught most of the words. "Team Rocket's back."

"That certainly isn't good." The old man's thinning grey eyebrows scrunched together as if he were planning a way to fix the problem.  
"They seem to be looking for... something" said the woman thoughtfully. "Do you think...?"

"Perhaps."

"But that was over fourteen years ago," the woman responded, "and a few times long before that. I'm sure you remember Goldenrod City."

"...Yes." The old man seemed to be treading on this topic carefully. "I was there to witness it... My house was one of three to be burned to the ground. The house right next to mine... the family never got out."

The woman looked at Delilah and saw that she was staring off into space, mostly gazing out the window. She turned back to the old man. "That's terrible... And just this morning I heard that a few Rocket members tried breaking into homes, probably for interrogation. They're really overdoing it with this search for that... you know... the thing Silph Co. was working on all those years ago."

"Delilah?" called a voice. The woman in question blinked a few times, still thinking about the previous conversation she had heard. A young man, probably in his late teens or early twenties, came into the lobby from a door to the right of the front desk. His brown hair was messy and he was dressed too casually to be a worker here, but he seemed to hold some authority in his voice. Sure enough, his next words were "You're up in less than five minutes, come on." His voice also dripped with sarcasm, or perhaps impatience as if he didn't want to be there.

_Shit. I can't do this. I can't._ The boisterous, boastful Delilah who wasn't afraid of anything now seemed to be on the brink of uncertainty and possibly hyperventilation. She walked, trying not to let her nervous state of mind cause her to stumble, until she reached the boy who called her. He smirked, seeing past her façade. She scowled in response.

"You have an awful attitude kid" Delilah said with forced calm. She figured if she brought back some of her own attitude, then having to battle in front of all those waiting people wouldn't be so bad.

"Well it's not like I want to be here" the boy said, scoffing. He had a slightly nasally voice that sounded like it was at the edge of adulthood, like a boy who is just growing out of puberty. "But my grandpa's pretty close with the people who work here - everyone knows him - so he figured I needed a job over Christmas vacation." He shrugged. "Hey, at least I get paid for this crud. Now come on, you're gonna be late."

Delilah swallowed hard as she was led through the door into the stadium. Sure enough, thousands, maybe tens of thousands of people - she wasn't so sure, were sitting along the perimeter of the enormous gym high above the floor. Blinding lights shone down onto the glossy, waxed wood floor that had a giant pokeball painted on it. The noise was insanely loud and Delilah almost considered turning back and returning to the quiet woods that weren't so far away. But she knew she had to do this. She looked around, scanning the crowd as if she'd actually see Trevor within the mass of blurry faces. Something in her stomach jolted and it took all her will power to keep from vomiting.

* * *

_The warmth between their two naked bodies was the most comfortable thing Rose had ever known. Warm arms wrapped themselves around her body, keeping her safe. Blankets and clothes were tossed this way and that, but they didn't care. The only thing that mattered was the love they had shared with each other that night - their first night. Rose opened her eyes and looked into the beautiful green ones that belonged to the woman holding her._

_"Does this mean you'll stay Delilah?" Rose asked in a whisper. She looked intently, almost admiringly, at the other woman, who looked down at her with a tired smile._

_"Stay?" she asked._

_"Forever."_

_"Of course." Delilah sat up, the blanket barely covering her breasts, and propped her head up with one hand. "I love you Rose, I told you that. And I just proved it to you. Isn't that enough to show you that I'm staying for good?"_

_"Well, yeah" said Rose, "I trust you with my life, and I love you too." She kissed the older woman gently on the lips, then buried her face into her chest. The skin here was velvety soft and she couldn't help but run her fingers gently over it, causing Delilah to shudder._

_Delilah grabbed Rose's hand and gave it a light squeeze. "Don't ever doubt what we have" she said. "Everything's over now, and we have each other. That's all that matters."_

Rose would forever remember these words, as they floated in the back of her mind every day. This, of course, was over ten years ago, but she'd always tried to stay hopeful that Delilah would come back to her some day. However, the wait was getting longer and more depressing as the years passed, breaking the dream of ever seeing her old lover again. It dragged her down and kept her from actually _living_. She felt wrong, almost disgusted with herself, when she woke up the next morning in the arms of the man who made love to her the previous night. These weren't the gentle arms she once knew. Those weren't the small, delicate lips. They weren't even the beautiful green eyes that so enraptured her. It was all so different, so strange, for her now.

With a yawn, she slithered out from Richard's loose embrace and put her clothes back on, which had been thrown in a careless pile on the floor near the couch. He stirred in his sleep, then rolled over and began snoring. A thin sheet was the only thing covering his naked body, and Rose pulled it up over him so he was completely covered. She shook her head and smiled sadly, then headed for the kitchen to make breakfast. She would have to keep her mind off of it; pretend nothing had happened last night. She didn't know how she would approach Richard after this, who had always been a best friend to her for years, but she couldn't just lie to him. She didn't love him and she knew it. There was only one person in the world that she loved, wherever in the world she may be.

"Breakfast is ready!" Rose called up the stairs about ten minutes later. A groggy voice responded with something incoherent. "Richard, come on" she said to the unconscious heap on the couch, shaking him gently. He opened his eyes and stretched, then smiled widely when he saw Iris coming down the stairs in her pajamas and matching slippers. Kane followed, yawning and scratching himself. Neither of them seemed to acknowledge the fact that there was a naked man laying on the couch, covered with nothing but a sheet.

"Morning kiddo" the man said happily, careful to somehow keep himself decent even with no clothes on whatsoever. He clutched the sheet to his chest. "Christmas Eve tomorrow night. You excited?"

"I'm too tired" Iris said with a yawn.

Richard laughed, then waited for the three of them to leave the room so he could get changed into his clothes. When he was done, he followed them into the dining room where eggs and bacon were being served. As always, Rose set up each plate in her own specific way, all of them looking identical. Even the silverware and cups of fresh orange juice had their own special arrangement. This obsessive-compulsive behavior had developed over time - specifically the time spent waiting. Waiting and hoping and wishing and praying. It was more of a neurotic behavior than a simple habit. The four of them sat down and ate in silence, Richard occasionally looking over at Rose while she ate. They gave each other small smiles, but didn't seem to want to look at each other much. Iris saw this and decided to bring up a topic to talk about.

"Are we having anyone else over for Christmas?" Iris asked with a bit of bacon in her mouth.

"I don't think anyone could possibly make it over here even if they wanted to" Rose said. She paused to take a sip of orange juice. "Not in this weather. But the only people I can think of who'd want to come over are Chris and Ivory, but we haven't seen them in years. And they could be busy. You know Ivory works at the Indigo Plateau now and Chris is just... Chris I suppose. It'd be rude to ask them last-minute to come over, either way."

"They're the only ones you can think of who'd want to visit for Christmas?" asked Iris. "No family or anything?"

"... No. Now finish up your food. If the weather gets any better, maybe we can all do some shoveling to clear out the snow around the house."

Breakfast was done and over with at around 10 'o clock. Iris and Kane offered to clear the table and wash dishes while the other two bundled up to go outside. There was a shed in the backyard where they kept some shovels. They grabbed one each and went to work shoveling out the snow that piled up around the house since no more of it was falling. They worked in silence for a few minutes, making their way around the house and planning on meeting up in the middle to get the job done faster. But after just a few feet, Richard stopped and turned around to look at Rose.

"You're trying to avoid it, aren't you?" he asked quietly. She, too, stopped and looked at him.

"I'm trying to forget it ever happened" she said. "It was amazing, don't get me wrong, but I'd rather just put it behind us. It was a one-time thing." She turned her back to him and continued shoveling, hoping she wasn't being too cold about it. She stopped abruptly as two strong arms wrapped themselves firmly but gently around her body, and Richard kissed her neck softly. She dropped the shovel and sighed as she practically melted in his arms.

"I don't want to forget" he whispered in her ear. "I love you." She was afraid that she'd eventually hear these words. She pulled away gently and turned around, looking up into soft amber eyes. "Iris needs someone like a father in her life. You can't try to raise her all by yourself Rose. She likes me and I do see her as the daughter I never had."

"And you can be the father she never knew" Rose said. "But that doesn't mean I'm ready to make a commitment Richard."

"Then what about last night...?" Their heads turned as Iris appeared in the front doorway, dressed in her favorite furry boots and fluffy jacket. Kane stood behind her, looking excited to see all the snow again. His tailed twitched as if he were ready to pounce into the nearest snow bank.

"Um, I came out here to help" said Iris. She noticed the closeness between the two and felt like she had walked in on something she shouldn't have. "I'll go grab a shovel from out back. Come on Kane." With a nod, Kane followed, kicking up the snow happily and melting a path with his flaming breath so they could get through it easier. Iris considered simply melting all the snow around the house, but she also knew that it would turn into a muddy, eventually icy, mess. She had no choice but to resort to some hard labor.

Walking out toward the shed, Iris passed the lonely tombstone that sat under the huge oak tree. A chill ran down her spine that she didn't think had anything to do with the cold. The tree's branches were wide and acted as an umbrella for the area around the grave, as if it were trying to protect it. This also kept the snow from piling up as high here, so the name engraved on the stone was easy to read - "Sage". Iris saw this, as she did every time she came out here, and silently wondered if the pokemon sleeping beneath the soil had actually lived up to its name. Rose was a very profound and thoughtful person, which might have meant that this Sage shared the same traits. Iris didn't even realize she'd stopped dead in her tracks to look at the grave. She mentally shook herself to jolt her thoughts back into the task at hand and continued walking toward the shed to get the shovel, a confused Kane following from behind.

It only took about an hour to shovel all the way around the small house. Rose and Richard switched off every ten minutes or so, since they had been shoveling before Iris started. The one not shoveling would go inside and help with wrapping presents, which they had almost forgotten to do. All the presents were piled up in Rose's bedroom along with many rolls of wrapping paper and ribbons and labels. Iris was given a roll of paper and some ribbon to wrap up her own gift she brought for her mother. She felt bad, having not bought anything for Richard. She hadn't been sure if he were coming over again this year or not, so it slipped her mind. With a bit of her allowance from a jar stored away in her room, however, she and Kane trekked through the thick snow to the Department Store to find something to buy.

"Hey Iris!" a voice called to Iris from across the street just a few yards from the store. She turned to look and found her childhood best friend, Edward, waving to her enthusiastically.

"Woah, Edward!" she said, surprised to finally see him back in Celadon City. He had been out of the region for quite some time, on his own travels to catch rare pokemon. But since his father was in the pokemon breeding business, Edward didn't catch them for battle. He would bring them back to his home in Blackthorn City and learn how to become a professional pokemon breeder like his father. He had also heard of a famous pokemon breeder who also owned the gym in Pewter City and hoped to meet him someday.

"It's been a while, hasn't it?" he asked with a laugh. He practically skipped across the street and stopped short in front of Iris, a huge grin on his tanned face. He had long and wavy jet-black hair tied back in a loose ponytail that hung a little past his shoulders.

"Three years Edward!" Iris said incredulously. "Why did it take you so long to get back?"

"I've been caught up with the business, you know? I managed to catch some really rare pokemon and Dad was helping me out. You know how it all works. But this time we've finally started moving out into the Hoenn and Sinnoh regions to catch pokemon that aren't native to here. I don't think you realize how much a foreign pokemon costs to adopt."

"I can only imagine." Iris was slightly uninterested, but tried not to show it too much.

"I take it that's Kane" he said, pointing to the Charmeleon hiding shyly behind Iris. She nodded and smiled, slightly boastful about it. "So where are you headed to?"

"The Department Store, for some last-minute shopping."

"Well I hope you have fun" said Edward, hugging her tight. She hoped the blush on her cheeks wasn't as bad as it felt. "I'll talk to you later. I remember where your house is, so I'll just stop by whenever. Is that okay?" Iris nodded again, at a loss for words. Something in her stomach seemed to be hindering her speech as well as her breathing.

"Char-char..." said Kane. He seemed to be giving her a shrewd, sideways look.

"That obvious, huh?" asked Iris. "I can't help it though... Come on, we have shopping to do." She turned around quickly and headed toward the giant multi-story store with the fountain out front. The water was frozen and the jets were turned off, so there wasn't anything very appealing about it. The two of them, practically the only ones there at the store, went through the front doors and headed upstairs.

"Chaaar...?" Kane said with his head tilted. He peered into the unmoving eyes of a pokemon doll that looked just like him. With a threatening snarl, he nudged it with its snout and caused it to fall over and knock over a couple others.

"You're making a mess Kane" Iris said in her usual motherly voice she used whenever she spoke to him. She picked up a Togepi doll and put it back on the shelf, then picked up the next one. But instead of putting it back, she looked on the name tag attached to its arm.

"Look, a Totodile doll!" she said, holding it up to Kane. "It's so cute! Good thing I brought extra money. I want this one for myself. And I bet Richard would like that one." She pointed to an enormous Lapras doll she noticed on the top shelf of the aisle. "Remember he told us the story of how he tried to catch one, but it got away? He's been after it for a long time. Maybe the doll would make him happy." She handed the Totodile doll to Kane, who looked at it hesitantly, and took out her money to count it. When she saw that she had more than enough for it, she asked a store clerk to help take the doll down. The cashier up front offered to wrap the giant stuffed pokemon in a gift box, but the Totodile doll remained under Iris' arm after it was rung up. Kane continued to eye it suspiciously.

"Kane, it's fake" Iris said with a laugh. "It can't move, so I doubt it's going to try and hurt you." They walked out of the store together and headed straight home, the two of them both carrying the box with the giant doll in it with them. They went in through the front and went up the stairs before anyone could see what they were doing. The box stood up against the wall, shimmering with gold and green wrapping paper. Iris kept the Totodile doll with her, eager to show her mother. Surely a cute, cuddly pokemon like Totodile would make her smile when she saw it.

"Hey Mom, I wanna show you something" said Iris as she came down the stairs. Rose was just coming into the living room with a bottle of furniture polish - she was on another one of her cleaning binges, which would probably last the entire day. She looked at the doll in silence as it was held up to her.

"It's... nice" she said shortly, her voice sounding forced. She cleared her throat. "I'm trying to clean the house up, so you can either help out or try to stay out of the way." Her sudden stern voice confused Iris, but she went back upstairs and put the doll on her bed. She came back down the stairs and went into the kitchen to grab some cleaning supplies to help her mother, finding Richard folding laundry in the laundry room.

"Hey kiddo, back so soon?" he asked, lifting up a stack of neatly folded towels and heading for the bathroom. He put them carefully on the shelves on the wall, then came back.

"Yeah, I was just looking around" Iris responded. "I bought a cute doll for myself while I was there. I showed Mom, but she didn't seem all that happy. Did something happen?"

"I'm not sure what's going through her mind right now" said Richard, standing in the kitchen with his hands in his pockets. "But we can't worry too much about that. We have to get the house ready for tomorrow. Too bad no one else is coming over. It would have been nice-"

_Knock knock._

"I got it" said Rose from the living room. She set her cleaning supplies down and opened the front door, revealing an excited-looking Edward.

"Hello. Is Iris home?" he asked politely.

"Oh. Wow, I haven't seen you in a while Ed. Come right in." Rose opened the door further and let him walk through, offering to take his coat. He immediately saw Iris coming into the living room, pretty much bounding toward him. She hugged him tightly, feeling herself beginning to blush again. But her sudden good mood with the arrival of her best friend didn't let it bother her at all.

"I didn't think you'd be coming so soon" said Iris happily, offering him a seat on the couch. She tried to be discrete as she moved just ever-so-slightly to the right to sit closer to the boy. He didn't seem to notice as he admired the Christmas tree in the corner. It wasn't one of those fake plastic ones that cheap parents seemed to buy. This one was real and filled the entire living room with an enticing, minty smell that all pine trees had. This and the smell of cookies baking in the oven were two things Iris loved more than anything about the holidays; even more so than the snow. The two of them, Iris and Edward, talked for the next hour or so. They mainly told of their adventures around the continent and what had been going on at home in the years they were apart. Edward hadn't even noticed that, in the time they were lost in conversation, Iris inched even closer to him until their arms were touching. Her hand was laying at her side, a fraction of an inch from his.

"You know what I miss about coming over to visit?" Edward asked. His voice was soft, - maybe he had noticed the closeness. Rose and Richard were in the kitchen getting lunch ready, probably trying to leave the other two alone on purpose. Kane was even helping them with lunch - anything that involved food he would want to happen as soon as possible.

"What's that?" asked Iris. She turned and looked into his dark brown eyes, closer to him than she thought she was. She suppressed a gasp.

A grin stretched out over his face, lighting up his dark brown eyes. "The snowball fights."

Iris laughed and Edward smiled even bigger as the girl's voice rang through the quiet living room. She stood up, offering a hand. "Come on then. There's plenty of snow." She laughed again at his surprised expression, and her heart nearly jumped into her throat as he took her hand gently and stood up from the couch. They headed outside into the frozen backyard after grabbing their jackets and boots.

_(A/N) Strange. I really didn't intend on making Edward look almost exactly like Jacob from the book Twilight, and with the same name as the main character. I'd hardly read the book at the time I was making the character... Irony I suppose. Sorry Lisa, I decided not to go with your idea for a name. Heh._


	5. Hope

The thousands of faces swirled before her eyes and made her even more nauseous. The bright lights weren't helping much here as they reflected harshly off the polished gym floor. The noise of the crowd cheering and screaming and whistling was lost in a monotonous, loud buzz that pressed on Delilah's ears as she stood close to the door in which she came. She highly considered, at this point, turning back and going home. But then she thought of Trevor and how he could see her from the stands, encouraging her silently and watching her with hope. She groaned, and then took a deep breath before stepping out into a pool of light that lit her side of the stadium. The noise from the crowd increased as they cheered her on, waiting anxiously for the battle to begin.

A shadow moved from the door on the other end of the gym underneath the crowd of people that sat fifteen feet up. As he stepped into the light, it lit up his sunglasses and obscured his eyes. He had neat, blazing red hair and a matching dress shirt and black tie. He seemed too well-dressed to be a pokemon trainer, never mind a member of the Elite Four. But Delilah knew well that this was Will, the first of four incredibly well-prepared fighters; this did not include Champion Lance who waited at the very end. The people in the stands were in an uproar as the famous trainer stepped up to his challenger. Will didn't smile or make any quick movements, but simply strode toward the center of the gym and stopped at the white line dividing his standing place from the battlefield. Delilah looked absolutely pathetic being in the same room as this man, but she knew better than to let his intimidating looks get the best of her. She tentatively followed his example and walked forward, though not nearly as graceful or confident as he.

There was no warning. There was no cue. Will simply called out his first pokemon's name and released it into the center of the enormous space between him and Delilah. A flash of light appeared and revealed the pokemon's outline for a split second, then it took on a physical form of many brightly colored feathers. It stretched its wide wings and let out an almost sing-song cry, then took its stance and prepared to fight. Delilah was one step behind, grabbing a pokeball from her belt with shaking hands and throwing it out into the fray. In a flash of light, as with the Xatu that was released, her faithful pokemon Alakazam appeared. He silently watched his opponent with unblinking eyes as if he were carefully anticipating the first move.

In a single blink of an eye, Xatu struck with surprising speed, moving almost invisibly toward Alakazam with a Peck attack. Alakazam was just as fast, dodging the attack effortlessly and reciprocating with Psybeam. It hit full-on, but didn't bring down the large bird as it soared up into the air and circled overhead blindingly fast. It swooped down to deliver a Steel Wing attack, but Alakazam's Agility helped him dodge it easily. Delilah saw that this would be a neck-and-neck battle and didn't know what to expect in the end, but by now she was determined to win. At one point, Alakazam was down for the count as another Steel Wing attack all but tore him to shreds. Pidgeot was next up, moving with lightning speed as she followed Xatu's every move. They danced and twisted and swooped together in the air as they tried to knock one another down, but Pidegeot's Swift attack brought Xatu down almost immediately.

Delilah couldn't even hear Will's voice over the noise of the crowd as he called upon his next pokemon – Slowbro. This one moved slow, but still seemed to have a well-prepared arsenal of weapons as it tried to blast Pidgeot again and again with Ice Beam. Every attack, save for one that immobilized her wing, missed completely. She was restricted to the ground as she hopped out of the way as an unexpected Flamethrower attack shot from the water pokemon's mouth. Delilah had no time to question it as she ordered Pidgeot to try the best she could to pelt the shelled pokemon with Whirlwind with her one working wing. The swirling wind successfully picked Slowbro up and tossed it at least five yards, and it landed with a loud thud, but it recovered quickly. Its Hydro Pump attack tossed the bird even further, but she did not get back up.

"Alright, come back Pidgeot!" Delilah called across the floor. The bird was returned to her pokeball and immediately replaced by Jade. Sixty kilos of muscle and scale stomped its way courageously to the center of the gym, letting out a vicious roar. This seemed to stir up the crowd even more; Delilah could have sworn she even heard her name being chanted a few times.

Will's next pokemon was Exeggutor, and it didn't hesitate for a second as it aimed a full-body Tackle toward its adversary. Jade braced herself for impact and Exeggutor recoiled as if it had run into a brick wall, then Jade Headbutted her opponent with tremendous force. Before it even hit the ground, it was blasted with Hyperbeam. When it finally landed with a sickening _crunch_ after being thrown an extra twenty feet, it was knocked out cold. Will returned the pokemon with the slightest trace of unease on his face, but he seemed able to keep himself together as he threw out the next ball. Another Xatu.

"Shit, this is gonna be tough" said Delilah, watching the bird soar up into the air and circle the stadium like a vulture. She watched it for a second, realizing that Will seemed to know that she needed a chance to pull herself together before heading into battle again. For this, she was thankful, because the ongoing battle had her nerved up and close to panic. She knew she couldn't keep one pokemon fighting until it no longer could - she would have to keep switching out, the returned pokemon having a chance to rest, if she hoped to win. With a few deep breaths, she called back Jade and sent out her fourth pokemon. "Alright, let's go Scyther!" she said, releasing her newly-caught pokemon. It flexed its long, scythe-like claws, eyeing the hovering bird with bloodlust.

In a flash, it darted away as a Psybeam attack headed straight for it. Again and again Xatu blasted psychic energy at it, only to be dodged a split second before it hit. Scyther sprang up and went for the bird with a Slash attack, hitting it just enough to knock it out of the sky. It squawked as it hit the ground in a flurry of shed feathers, and then it got back up on its feet. It opened its mouth, readying a Shadow Ball attack as Scyther continuously darted around the gym to confuse it. Xatu watched carefully with onyx-colored eyes, waiting two seconds, then three, then four. When the time was right and it could see where the giant bug would end up next, it released all its fury in the form of powerful dark energy that struck home. The opponent ran right into it and was thrown onto its back, hissing and writhing out of anger more than pain. It took a second to get back up, but when it did, it slashed relentlessly at Xatu with Fury Swipes attack again and again and again with all the force it could muster. Delilah thought she had heard the ripping of flesh as the razor-sharp claws dug mercilessly into Xatu. It all happened so fast that the people in the stands would have probably missed it if they looked away for even a moment. Blood was sprayed and splattered all over the place, to some of the crowd's distaste, and it didn't stop until there were no more cries of pain to be heard. Xatu fell to the floor like a rag doll. It didn't show any movement, including the rising and falling of its chest to indicate breathing.

A referee that was standing by ran into the fray and called for a time out, too squeamish to even look at the fallen pokemon. He turned away, looking around frantically for someone to help. Some people booed, some people cheered, and some watched in silent horror, but the uproar of the crowd still seemed to have died down significantly as some medics were finally called to the floor. Will watched, expressionless as if he were torn between feeling remorse or horror or anger. He stepped forward, then fell to his knees in front of the pokemon that was no more. Delilah looked at her own pokemon, her face white as chalk, but the Scyther didn't seem to care what was going on. It stared with a burning hatred in its violet blue eyes as the blood-stained body was carried off. Will followed, and the Elite Four battle was postponed by order of the referee.

* * *

"I wonder what she's doing" Rose said to the unresponsive slab of marble, her voice lacking tone and emotion. She kneeled in front of the all-too-familiar tombstone shaded by the protective oak tree. "Do you think she's thinking about me too?" The only response was a slightly chilly sweep of wind, picking up the powdery snow like dust. The oak tree's naked branches trembled, as if responding to the cold, and little bits of snow fell all around Rose. But she continued to sit there and stare at the grave, her eyes following the curve of the four letters etched into the stone - "Sage". She did this almost every other day - coming to her old companion's grave and talking for hours on end as if he were physically there to listen. But the way she asked the nonexistent pokemon questions sounded like a plea, as if she were begging him to answer her. Iris had watched this from her bedroom window ever since she could remember, feeling pity and even guilt for the broken pieces of her mother that were slowly disintegrating even further - she wished more than anything that there was something she could do for the woman.

"I wish Delilah would come see me this Christmas." She said this every year around this time and even though it hadn't happened yet since the big breakup, she still waited faithfully on Christmas Eve and the following day. But by the time that day was done and presents were unwrapped and used and marveled over, and the tree was taken down for good, she'd be a complete wreck. The next day would be stubbornly dedicated to hiding beneath her covers and crying as she prayed to God to make the pain stop. It was all she could do to keep from falling apart completely, though the seams were already frayed.

In the front yard of the house, however, Iris and Edward had just gotten done with their long-anticipated snowball fight and were enjoying each other's company on the front step. Kane had joined them shortly after, listening to their conversation with mild interest. It was as though the two sides of the house were two greatly contrasting worlds. It was silent, and the thick layer of snow surrounding them magnified it greatly. The sun was further to the west now, but not quite ready to disappear for the night. The clouds that relentlessly showered the city in snow had finally dispersed, leaving a clear blue sky fading to pinkish purple closer to the horizon.

"It's so beautiful" said Iris, gazing at the scenery.

Edward, however, had been staring at _her_. It took him a moment to realize what she was talking about. "Huh? Oh... Y-yeah, it's nice." His dark complexion concealed the blush a bit.

"Are you staying?" asked Iris, finally turning to him. "I mean for Christmas. Are you gonna stay to exchange presents?"

"Well..." Edward shifted uncomfortably. "I had just gotten back today and I haven't even gotten a chance to get you a present... And this would be the first Christmas I've spent at home with the family after three years... Sorry."

Iris shook her head. "It's fine, no need to apologize. I didn't get you a present either, 'cause I had no clue when you planned on coming back, or _if _you were coming back at all. I just wanted to know what your holiday plans were."

"Isn't anyone else coming over?"

"Not that I know of... I know Richard's staying the whole week and I think into the weekend. But Mom hasn't told me about anyone else... It's sad. She seems so lonely on the holidays even with Richard here. It's like there's... something missing..."

The two of them were silent again, watching the sun move across the sky slowly. It eventually began disappearing on the horizon, turning the sky bright orange and pink and purple. The rest of the sky was fading to grey. At this point, the three of them - Iris, Edward, and Kane - went inside to warm up and make some more hot cocoa. Their boots and scarves and coats and hats were all left at the door when they came in. They settled down on the couch with piping hot coffee mugs and a bag of marshmallows to go with it. Rose had finally come back into the house and went about cleaning whatever she'd missed without a word to anyone else. Her mind didn't seem to be all there, as if she'd left it outside at the base of the old oak tree.

"Hey Mom, look at this" said Iris from the living room. She had the TV on and turned to the news channel where a young blond lady was talking outside the Pokemon League building. Some people were crowded around it to see what was going on, but numerous police officers tried holding them back and keeping them from trying to get inside. Apparently this was something big and when Rose walked into the room and saw the image on the screen, she immediately assumed Team Rocket was at it again. But then the blond woman started speaking rapidly into the microphone:

"This is Kristy Renolds with an important news report. I'm here right now in front of the famous Pokemon League building where a mind-blowing battle had just occurred no more than an hour ago. Elite Four trainer Will is currently recovering from the tragic loss of one of his pokemon, which has fallen victim to a vicious pokemon that had been battling it. It was a newly-caught Scyther, a female no doubt, that relentlessly attacked Will's well-trained Xatu with Slash attack until it was no longer breathing. The bird suffered from blood loss from many deep gashes across its chest and stomach. This has been a very first for the history of the Indigo Plateau, where well-prepared trainers come to battle once they obtain the eight badges of Kanto. We have asked for an interview from 35-year-old Delilah, but she has refused to cooperate with interviewers and has instead retreated to her home in Goldenrod City. A news update will be available at 11."

Iris immediately picked out the accusatory phrases "well-trained" and "well-prepared". Rose, however, seemed very out of it as her face went from slightly pale to sheer paper-white. She had been holding a spray bottle and dish towel in her hand when she came into the room, but her hands let them drop to the floor and trembled slightly. Her breathing was quick and on the brink of hyperventilation. Richard came in behind her and put his hands on her shoulders, turning her around to face him and shaking her lightly.

"Rose? Rose! Are you okay??" he said, looking into the woman's eyes. But her blue eyes, reddening from fresh tears, were staring off into something unseen. She jumped when she heard her name being called again, then blinked a few times as if she didn't know where she was. She looked at Richard with a heartbreakingly helpless gaze, back at the television that was showing some commercial, then at the three sitting on the couch. They watched her worriedly, Iris on the edge of her seat as if she were ready to spring up and help her mother if she needed to.

"I'm... I'm fine. I just need a moment to relax..." said Rose in a hoarse whisper. She left her cleaning supplies where they were on the floor and went into her room, shutting the door tightly behind her. Richard sighed, eyeing the bedroom door as if Rose were to come back out at any moment, then he picked up the spray bottle and towel and went into the kitchen to finish whatever she'd been doing.

"I'm sorry you had to see that" Iris whispered to Edward as the two of them tried to relax again. "She gets like that when things remind her of... something, I don't know what it is, that happened to her a few years back. She won't tell anyone what's wrong. Not even Richard. She'd always seemed so depressed as long as I can remember, but it takes one little thing to make her edgy like this. Then she goes into her room and hides from everyone. It worries me so much."

"It was probably something so traumatizing that she just can't deal with it" said Edward, watching Iris' face closely. He knew talking about her mother was a very hard thing, and he just wanted to make sure he didn't say something wrong to upset the girl. She stared at the brightly-lit tree and sighed, then turned back to Edward.

"That's obvious," she said, "but I really wish I knew what was going on with her. I'm thinking it might have to do with the pokemon that's buried in the backyard under the oak tree. That was her pokemon at one point in her life, but she never told me where she got it or what happened to it. I guess she got upset when she heard the news about the guy whose pokemon died in battle. That's the only thing I can think of."

Edward simply nodded in response, then said "It's getting late, I just realized. I have to get home soon. Don't worry though, I live in the same house as the last time you saw me. I won't have to walk so far."

"Will you be coming back?" Iris asked, a hint of worry in her voice.

"Most likely quite a few times before I have to leave again. Usually this is a three-month-trip, in the summer, but this is something big that my father and I are doing. So it might last a whole year this next time around. I promise it won't be nearly as long as last time. It's hard to stay away from this place anyway." He grinned at Iris, then leaned in and kissed her on the cheek. She blushed, but tried to hide it by giving him a huge bear hug. He pulled away and said his goodbyes, then shrugged into his coat and slipped his boots on. It seemed like he had just gotten to the house and now he was already leaving, and Iris realized this. She hoped he would be back very soon and had almost called him back to the house and begged him to stay longer. But she knew he needed to see his own family for Christmas. She shut the door with a sigh, then plopped back down on the couch. Kane looked at her curiously.

"Char?" he said with a tilt of his head. Iris sighed again.

"I wish we had more people comin' over for Christmas" she said with her head laid back on her couch. "This sucks. I don't know much of Mom's family and I don't even know who the hell my dad is. No cousins, no siblings... Ugh."

"Char cha-char" Kane growled, hopping off his favorite chair to sit with his companion. She patted him on the head and smiled.

"At least I have you" she said. "Maybe it won't be so bad." She yawned and stretched out as far as she could on the couch, her head hanging upside-down over the arm of it. "I wish Edward could have stayed. I like him."

"Char?"

"Well, okay, it's a lot more than just _like_. But I don't think I love him... But I'm not so sure either... I've never been in love before, so it's hard to tell. You understand what I'm saying though, right Kane?" The pokemon looked at her without saying anything, but the expression in his eyes held some meaning. It was as though he understood everything without question. He nodded once and it almost looked like he was smiling.

"Dinner's ready" Richard called from the kitchen. Iris and Kane got up off the couch and moved sluggishly to the kitchen, reluctant to interrupt their relaxation time. Both of them had the habit of becoming extremely lazy two or three days before Christmas and wanted to simply sleep through those days so they could open their presents sooner. Winter was a lazy season anyway, which contributed even further toward the days of sitting around and watching TV or reading or helping with needless chores - namely Rose's desire to make the house spotless, even if that meant cleaning every inch of every room and more. Iris loved this side of her mother because it gave her something to do to pass the time.

Dinner was pasta and baked rolls with butter. This was Iris' favorite meal, but she preferred the way her mother made it. It had a homemade feel to it, even if it was just some store-brand spaghetti with Ragu sauce and Pillsbury dough. Richard apparently had no skill in cooking this meal to perfection, which could be easily seen on the burnt-to-a-crisp underside of each roll. The spaghetti was a tad overcooked as well, but the three of them managed to eat it without much complaint. Rose was still shut up in her room and refused to eat when Richard brought her a plate; he had even brought her the little foldable table that most people used for breakfast in bed. But she gave him the bullshit story that she was tired from all the cleaning and would rather try and get some sleep for the night. It was only 7:30, but Richard didn't feel like arguing. He put the food into a plastic container and put it away in the fridge for later.

"I'll help you with the dishes Richard" said Iris. She was again trying to find something to do to pass the time and hopefully get her closer to sleeping in the next morning. She took her time washing each dish, then dried them and put them away carefully. When that was done, she slowly climbed the stairs up to her room with Kane following as usual. The two of them sat down on the bed.

"Christmas isn't coming fast enough" Iris complained with a bit of a pout on her face. I guess it's worth the wait tho-" She stopped in mid-sentence and whipped her head toward the window. "Did you hear that??" she asked incredulously. Kane was also listening and watching carefully.

_Whoosh, whoosh.  
_  
"Is it really that windy out?" Iris got to her feet and looked out the window, which overlooked the relatively large backyard. She looked at the oak tree to see how much the branches moved in the wind, but they were as still as the grave underneath it. Confused, Iris searched the yard for the source of the sound.

_Whoosh._

Now that she had the chance to hear it again, she noticed it sounded more like the swooping of a bird's wings than the wind. But it sounded huge. Nervously, she looked up into the purple sky, dotted faintly with stars. A shadow from overhead soared over the backyard, circled around, came back over the house, then circled again to repeat its course. It looked like a humongous bird with a tail like a streamer and a wingspan almost as wide as the house itself. Iris gasped, watching its mesmerizing and graceful movement. She didn't even notice it had started to snow heavily again.

"Kane, come look at this!" she said, still staring fixedly at the enormous bird. It continued to circle, as if in distress. Kane walked to the window and looked out. He growled when he spotted the intimidating pokemon. "I don't think it'll hurt you Kane, whatever it is. I guess it's some kind of pokemon. We should go out there to see it!" She sprang to her feet, grabbed her bag, and rushed out the door with Kane following hesitantly. She grabbed her coat and hurried past Richard, who was relaxing on the couch.

"Where are you off to so late kiddo?" he asked, looking up from a thick book he had been reading. His square reading glasses made him look even older than he really was.

"I need to go see something real quick" said Iris, breathless with excitement. "I'll be back, don't worry." Richard nodded once, then went back to his book.

When Iris was back outside, she searched the skies again for the huge bird. At once, it soared over them from the front of the house and circled a few times before heading eastbound away from them. It stopped a few hundred yards away, then turned and came back. Iris craned her neck and turned around many times to watch its movement and make sure she didn't lose track. Its tail feathers seemed to sparkle as they trailed behind it; it was almost twice the length of its own body. And even in the slightly darkened sky, Iris could see that the pokemon was a beautiful sapphire color.

"I bet I can get a picture before it leaves" she said, kneeling down to get out her sketchpad. Kane eyed the giant pokemon warily, occasionally letting out a long growl from deep within his throat - he didn't seem as thrilled to see this bird hovering over his home as Iris was.

"Char char!" he said, looking somewhere toward the woods far behind the oak tree. The bird had disappeared completely and left nothing behind but the falling snow, which was piling up rapidly. Iris ran toward the woods where Kane was cautiously looking for the bird, but he seemed very reluctant to follow. Instead, he stayed where he was a few yards from the grave.

Iris stepped into the small wooded area and looked around. There weren't very many trees between the beginning of the woods and the end where there was pavement, so she stayed where she was and tried to search the darkness. From her left, she heard a rustling sound. She spun around, her heart beating twice as fast now, and found the bird sitting comfortably in a pile of dead leaves. It looked even bigger now - it would have probably been just as tall as, or even taller than, Iris if it were standing. It looked at her with piercing red eyes, but it didn't seem scared or agitated at all. She admired its regal crown of blue feathers and the long tail that wrapped itself gracefully around the bird's body. She reached for the pokedex she kept in her pocket, then changed her mind at the last minute. Instead, sketchpad in hand, she kneeled down and drew a fully detailed picture and signed her name. She stuffed it into her bag and gazed at the bird, and for a moment she wanted to see if she could reach out and pet it. To see if it were actually real or not. But then Richards's voice called from the back door.

"Iris, are you out here?"

"Coming!" Iris called back, springing to her feet. The giant bird also stood, but then leapt up as high as it could and took off like a rocket into the sky. It disappeared somewhere in the distance with a trail of sparkles following from its tail.

"Did you see the size of that thing??" said Iris once she was back in her room. She was dressed in a night gown and socks, but she wasn't at all ready to settle into bed. Kane sat on the bed and watched her pace to the window and look out into the night sky. The bird had flown away and didn't come back, so Iris had no choice but to go to bed and get some sleep. In the morning, she would have to check the picture she drew to make sure she hadn't been dreaming.


	6. When I Come Around

_(A/N) Am I the only one who has so much trouble with the document uploader on this site??_

The evening passed in a dreary, dream-like haze, as if time itself had slowed down. The sun disappeared for the night and left a cloudless, starry black sky in its wake. It wasn't snowing on this end of the continent, but a slightly chilly wind still swept through the enormous Goldenrod City as if promising to catch up with the lack of snow soon. The ground did, however, have a small layer of snow from earlier that afternoon. Delilah gazed out her bedroom window at the stars and the half-moon hanging in the sky. Her face was expressionless as she leaned it against the cool glass, her breath fogging it up. She had left the Pokemon League without looking back and had no intentions of ever returning. How could she when she'd completely humiliated herself that afternoon? She knew that her newly-caught Scyther had a bit of a temper, but she'd had no idea that she would behave the way she did in battle. It made her feel like a complete failure.

With a sigh, she turned away from the window and laid back on her many pillows. She stared up at the ceiling, painted plain white. It reminded her too much of her much smaller room at her parents' house just down the street, still intact if she ever decided to visit for weeks at a time. This house that she'd decided to live in with Trevor was set up almost the exact same way, but her room was the master bedroom. There were two large windows side-by-side, one of them hanging over the bed almost the same way as her old house. There was a walk-in closet on the west side of the room and on that same wall was an enormous bookcase. Delilah had dedicated her life to learning all she could about the countless species of pokemon in the world and thus felt the need to stock up on every kind of book imaginable on the subject.

Looking at this bookcase, she realized something. She got up and kneeled in front of it, looking for a specific book on the shelves. She found it, grabbed it, and went back to her bed. It looked almost like one of those huge Britannica encyclopedias, but it had many pages dedicated to certain species of pokemon. This book listed pokemon alphabetically from S to U, and Delilah opened it to the middle of the S tab. She flipped a few pages, then found what she was looking for. A photograph of a Slowbro in its natural habitat, on some island close to the beach, was shown in the upper corner. Other than that, the entire page was covered in text and went on for a few more pages after. Delilah read through it and after a minute or two, she found what she was looking for:

_Slowbro are highly coveted amongst breeders everywhere because of its ability, as a water-type, to learn fire-type moves such as Fire Blast and Flamethrower. This can only, however, be obtained through breeding if the father knows a fire-type move. The baby Slowpoke will inherit this and be born with the ability to use it without any training required._

"Guess that explains it then" Delilah muttered, shutting the book and letting it fall to the floor. She laid back down and threw an arm over her face, not wanting to stare at the ceiling any longer. Her thoughts lingered elsewhere - across the vast Johto oceans all the way into Kanto and through Celadon City. She could picture it clear as day - the house she'd once lived in close to the Department Store. It was relatively small, seeing as this was the largest city in all of Kanto, but it had always been cozy and neat. She pictured the inside of it, with its dimly-lit living room and television and the small dining room just big enough for a small family, and the spacious, white kitchen. The back door led out onto a small patio where an old wooden swing hung with rusted chains. She remembered buying this as a gift for the lover she lived with in the house, but they found no use of the swing after the fight. It was left outside and never touched as it looked out into the backyard, where a lonely grave stood underneath the enormous oak tree. Delilah opened her eyes slowly, not wanting to let the daydream stray any further. She couldn't bear to see the only woman she'd ever loved kneeling helplessly in front of the tombstone, talking to it and silently hoping it would respond.

Delilah turned her head toward her door as she heard someone knocking on it. She already knew who it'd be, seeing as she only lived with one other person, so she responded with a raspy "come in". Trevor opened the door slowly and stepped in.

"You okay?" he asked, sitting down on the bed beside her. She sat up and moved to sit closer.

She was silent for a moment, then said "Well, it hasn't exactly been the best day of my life." Her sarcastic attitude held her back from bawling her eyes out right then and there.

"Are you ever goin' back?"

"When I'm ready, maybe." She turned and stared out the window, pretending to take some interest in something outside. She focused her attention on a house that was slightly over-decorated. The front yard had plastic, light-up pokemon with little Santa suits and there was a fake Christmas tree loaded with bulbs and lights and tinsel. The house was outlined - every inch of it was - with blinking rainbow lights. Delilah would have laughed at it if she weren't in such a horrible mood. Nothing could be heard in that room but the sound of their steady breathing. Trevor watched her worriedly for a good five minutes until he decided to break the silence.

"What are you thinking about?" he asked.

Delilah didn't turn back around as she responded. "...Rose." The name came out hesitantly, as if she would lose it forever if she let it escape her lips.

Trevor nodded. "You should go see her then. It's been years. I'm sure she don't hold a grudge for _that_ long. 'Sides, it's almost Christmas."

"I'm not afraid of her being mad at me for the fight. I don't even expect her to. I'm afraid she'll hate me for being gone for this long. I just... left her there."

"The space has probably healed you two more than you expect" said Trevor. "I bet at this point she's jus' lonely. She misses ya."

"And I bet she saw the news this evening" responded Delilah sourly.

"Do you really believe she'll think of you any different? You seem like the same old Delilah to me."

Delilah shrugged and turned back around to face him. "Yeah, but she knows I can be better than this. She's seen how hard I've been training and preparing for today. I thought I had everything under control. I didn't think Scyther would... do that..." Her voice became choked and she immediately turned back toward the window. Trevor put a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"You had no idea that would happen," he said, "and it was beyond your control. The train is still up and runnin' on Christmas. I think you should go see Rose tomorrow. You know where she is, and you know that train'll take you straight to Celadon City."

"I'll think about it" said Delilah. After that she was silent, so Trevor got to his feet and walked out. He would leave her to her own thoughts and let her decide on her own what she wanted. But she wasn't even entirely sure herself what she wanted to do. This was the twelfth chance she had to go visit Rose and she highly considered backing out of it like she did every year. She would sit in front of the station on Christmas Eve and see the train stop nearby, but she'd always hesitate and rethink her decision. But before she could even make a choice, the train would leave without her. She'd lived with this indecisiveness for the twelve years she and Rose were apart and it was the same thing every year. But would this year be different? She didn't want to dwell too much on it and instead decided to try and get some sleep. It'd been a long and nerve-wracking day for her and she didn't need anymore complications than were necessary. She fell asleep almost as soon as she buried herself underneath her covers.

Morning came almost immediately and it brought with it the snowfall that Goldenrod City had been waiting for all year. The ground was blanketed in at least a foot of fluffy white snow and the sky sprinkled even more of it endlessly onto the city. Some people were already out shoveling the sidewalks and trying to unbury their annoying Christmas-themed lawn ornaments. Delilah woke up and peered outside, then got up and went to her closet. She never kept her shirts in a drawer because she didn't feel like constantly folding them to put them away, so she instead kept them in the closet on many hangers. She grabbed about seven of them and threw them onto her bed, and then she went to her dresser to grab some pants to go with them and underwear. This was all thrown messily onto the bed as well. She heard Trevor knocking on the door and told him to come in.

"Uhh, what are you doing?" he asked with two coffees in his hand from the local coffee shop.

"Packing" Delilah said shortly, fishing out a duffle bag from underneath her bed. She opened it and stuffed her clothes into it, then zipped it up.

"I didn't think ya made the decision so soon" said Trevor. "Anyway, here, I got coffee while I was out. I was gonna to tell you that I also bought bread and eggs, but I see you're leaving."

"Not right away." Delilah was making sure the most important items were in her bag, like her pokeballs and pokedex. Some healing items went into the biggest pouch just in case.

"When?" asked Trevor.

"I guess tonight. I need some time to think it over and... well... I'm honestly very nervous."

Trevor put the two coffees down on the dresser and captured Delilah in a bear hug. She gasped for air and pushed him away, then ruffled his black curly hair playfully. He looked at her for a moment, and then said "You'll do fine. Bring a Christmas present. That's really all I can think of to do." He shrugged.

"That actually sounds like a pretty good idea" said Delilah "I have some money, so I'll just take a look at what the stores around here have." She grabbed her wallet from the top drawer of her dresser and counted the bills inside carefully. "Yeah, that's more than enough. I'll go out later on to shop."

Trevor handed her the coffee. "Here, before it gets cold."

"Thanks."

The morning seemed to have gone by so much quicker than Delilah expected, and before she realized it, it was already 3 in the afternoon. She had been reading a book to give her some time to think about what she wanted to get Rose for Christmas, but she'd ended up losing track of time completely. It was when she finally checked the clock on her nightstand that she decided to get up. She grabbed her wallet and headed out the door, bidding Trevor goodbye on the way.

Goldenrod City was at least twice the size of Celadon City and had almost all the features of the latter, such as the Department Store. Walking through the snowy streets, Delilah spotted the Pokemon Daycare Center, where two well-known pokemon breeders took care of pokemon of all types. She decided to stop here first and look at the few pokemon wandering around the large field next to the house. The house was small, more like a shack than a house, but the field was enormous. It had a decent-sized pond where water-type pokemon could swim and some trees and other foliage. There was a section of tall grass - almost four feet tall - where some bug pokemon would have been lurking if it weren't for the bad weather. One of the two breeders who lived here, the kind elderly lady, came out into the yard to check on the pokemon that could stand the cold. She spotted Delilah at once.

"Why hello there child" she said with a smile that pronounced the wrinkles around her eyes.

"Oh, hello" said Delilah. She leaned on the picket fence that separated her from the snowy field in front of her.

"Are you interested in adopting a pokemon?" the old woman asked.

"Adopting? I didn't know I could."

The old woman nodded. "So many trainers come here to have us take care of their pokemon, but they don't realize that it's inevitable that similar species of pokemon in this field are going to breed. When the trainers come back and see some unexpected eggs, they abandon them. Some have already hatched, but have no mother to take care of them. Others are unhatched. Luckily we have an incubator inside for just that. But we can't keep so many pokemon and try to raise them ourselves. We're hoping that some kindly trainers will adopt either the eggs or the babies that have already hatched."

"Well... What do you have available?" Delilah asked. The woman signaled for her to come inside the house and into the field through the backdoor. She did this, seeing that no one else was home, and stepped outside. She was immediately greeted by many curious baby pokemon that had been playing together. She kneeled down and picked up a Pichu to pet it, but it decided to climb onto her shoulder and snuggled into her hair instead.

"They are very friendly" the woman said with a laugh. "I can't see why trainers wouldn't want to take them. I suppose they simply don't want the responsibility." She sighed sadly as she watched baby pokemon of all kinds surround Delilah and climb all over her.

"Ouch!" said Delilah, turning around quickly. Some kind of pokemon had bitten her on the thigh, but she couldn't tell what it was when she looked at it. It looked like some kind of mangy, purple cat with a feather duster kind of tail. The old woman chuckled.

"A lot of trainers bring pokemon from all over the world" she said. "This one isn't native to here, as you've noticed. It's called a Stunky."

Delilah reached out a shaky hand and pet it. Its hair was very long and soft, but the Stunky didn't purr as she ran her fingers through it. It looked up at her with curious eyes, its nose twitching as it smelled the air around her. "It's so ugly" she said with a laugh.

"I'd say skunks have a certain charm to them" the woman said with a smile.

"Skunk...?" Delilah pulled her hand back slowly, as if touching the pokemon would make it suddenly explode.

The old woman was laughing again, her voice raspy with age. "They don't spray unless they see you as a threat. But they're not as quick to defend themselves as most people think. They're very friendly as long as you're nice." Delilah eyed it suspiciously, then slowly reached out to pet the Stunky again. It nipped her again playfully, this time on the arm, then stood up on its hind legs to smell her clothes.

"Is this a girl or a boy?" Delilah asked, petting the purple skunk with more confidence this time.

"A girl" the woman responded. "A young man brought her here after finding her wandering the streets. The only reason why she's all the way over here and not in the region she's native to is because the boy was traveling at the time. But he couldn't find the time to take care of her, so he brought her here."

"So... How much would I have to pay to adopt her?" asked Delilah.

"We don't charge a price for you to take home any of these pokemon" the woman said with a smile. "We just ask that you'll be responsible and caring. They all need a good home."

"I'll take the, uhh, skunk then" said Delilah, letting the pokemon in question curl up in her lap. "I know someone who'd love to take it in."

"That's very sweet of you child."

Delilah stood up with the fluffy pokemon cradled in her arms. The Pichu was still on her shoulder, reluctant to leave. It clung on tightly. "Um. I guess I can take this one too" said Delilah. "I have some time on my hands, so I can take care of it. Besides, I don't have any electric-types on my team."

"That would be nice" said the woman. "That one is male and it'll evolve without training. I'm sure you've heard of such a thing?"

"Yeah" Delilah responded shortly.

"I can get you a pokeball to keep it in."

Delilah nodded and waiting for the woman to come back with a pokeball. It didn't take very long, and the Pichu was sent safely into it. Delilah said goodbye to the old woman and left, heading straight back to her house. "I guess I have my Christmas present for Rose then" she said to the Stunky falling asleep in her arms. She opened one eye and looked up curiously. "You need a name. Hmm... Well... you're purple, for a start..." She sighed. "This is tough. I hate coming up with names, but you don't have the most attractive species name." The pokemon opened both eyes and blinked at her, nose twitching nonstop. "Well, I named my Nidoqueen Jade. Maybe I'll match it with another name of a stone." She made it to the house and climbed the few steps up to the front door, putting the Stunky on the ground.

"What the hell is THAT thing?" Trevor asked when he met Delilah at the door. "You got them street cats following you home?"

"No, I adopted her for Rose" said Delilah. "It's called a Stunky, not native to here. I'm trying to come up with a name for the damn thing."

"Well make sure it don't tear up the furniture an-"

"Amethyst!" said Delilah, cutting him off.

"Um, what?" asked Trevor with a raised eyebrow.

"That's what I can name her! She's purple, like an amethyst stone, and I remember Rose told me one time that amethyst is her birthstone."

Trevor plopped down on his favorite brown leather armchair, which had a deep indent in the seat from him sitting in it so much. Beside the chair on the floor was a liter bottle of soda and a big bag of potato chips. "Whatever" he mumbled. "Jus' don't let that rat eat the furniture, or dig in the trash. I don't need to be cleanin' up after it."

Delilah sighed and rolled her eyes. "It's a skunk, not a rat. And I'll make sure she behaves."

"Oh? And where is she?"

The two of them looked around the living room floor for the pokemon in question, but she was nowhere to be found. Delilah hurried out of the room and into the kitchen to search and then upstairs to her room. She pushed the door open, which had been slightly ajar, and found Amethyst tearing the covers off of the large queen-sized bed. Nothing had been ripped, but Amethyst seemed to have made herself a nest consisting of pillows and blankets. They were arranged in a messy pile in the middle of the floor and when she was finally done dragging the last sheet onto it, she squirmed underneath the covers and curled up into a ball.

"I have a feeling you're going to be very difficult" said Delilah, lifting up all the covers. Amethyst looked up at her, then stood up to try and pull the blankets out of Delilah's arms. She simply clung to them and was lifted up off the floor with them as they were tossed back onto the bed. Amethyst growled playfully as she dug herself another blanket tunnel and scurried inside, her bushy tail sticking out of the entrance. Delilah laughed and sat down on the bed, careful not to lean on the little mound raised up out of the blankets. She grabbed her bags to make sure she had packed everything she needed. The clock read 4:30 - a little too early to leave just yet. She didn't want to randomly drop by Rose's house if she were in the middle of getting things ready for Christmas. Delilah finally decided, after about ten minutes of staring out the window at the people passing by, that she was going to take a nap to pass the time. She grabbed some of the blankets and threw them over herself, and she fell asleep almost right away.

"Hey Delilah...?" A voice cut through the hazy darkness and for a moment, Delilah thought she was dreaming. "Delilah, wake up."

She opened her eyes to a dimly-lit room and the shadowy outline of Trevor standing over her. He looked worried. "W-what is it...?" mumbled Delilah. She sat up and yawned. "What time is it?"

"It's 7. I figured you wanted to leave around now. Umm... I can't find that pokemon you brought home with you. I looked all over the house..."

"Ah crap" said Delilah, getting to her feet. She was still a little groggy and lightheaded. She waited for the room to stop spinning, then grabbed her bags from the floor next to the bed. "I'll go out and look for her, and when I do find her I'll just head right for the train. This shouldn't take long. I'll see you... I guess whenever Rose decides to kick me out. I'm betting on two days."

"Good luck with that" said Trevor, giving Delilah one of his signature bear hugs. "I'll be here when you get back."

They said their goodbyes and Delilah headed outside into the cold, where the snow was starting to fall again. It was heavy and it only took a few minutes for it to pile up on Delilah's hair. She brushed the snow off herself in annoyance as she looked up and down the streets for Amethyst. She finally found a fresh set of footprints in the snow that hadn't been covered up yet, so she followed them to a narrow back alley. It was pitch black, but she knew she had to find the pokemon before she left for Kanto.

"Hey Amethyst?" she said with a shaky voice. "Come here girl..." She called a few more times, but there was no answer. She didn't want to have to go into the dark alley, but it seemed like she had no other choice. With a deep breath, she calmed her nerves enough to step inside. She was in between two large buildings and a few of the windows were lit, so it wasn't nearly as dark as she'd expected. She walked through the crunchy snow, peering behind some trash cans as she went. There wasn't any sign of Amethyst other than the set of footprints that were slowly disappearing under the falling snow. Something far ahead clattered and echoed off the brick walls on either side of the alley.

"Who's over there?" she called into the night. There was no answer, but she was too petrified to make her feet move any further. She listened closely and could hear someone, or something, walking closer and closer with every step. There was an unsteady _crunch crunch crunch_ in the snow as if whatever was walking had a limp. Delilah backed up a few feet as she saw the figure step into the dim pool of light in front of her. It was a mangy dog that looked like it was clinging to life by a thread. Its ribs jutted out sickeningly from its sides and it wheezed as it tried to breathe. Upon closer inspection, Delilah saw that it was a Houndoom, and it only had three legs. The fourth leg - the left hind leg - was missing all the way up past the knee, but it was completely healed over and left nothing but a stump. The Houndoom wagged its long tail weakly as it slowly approached Delilah, who stayed where she was. The dog got close enough to smell her, then nudged her hand with its red-furred muzzle. She pet it reluctantly.

"I take it you haven't seen my skunk anywhere" said Delilah. She chuckled at the fact that she was talking to something that wouldn't have understood. The dog cocked its head, then turned around and trotted away. It stopped after a few yards and whimpered, then walked another few feet and stopped again to look back. Delilah watched its movement for a moment, then shrugged and followed it almost to the other end of the alley. Inside a cardboard box, under another pool of light, a familiar bushy tail was poking out.

"There you are!" said Delilah as she bent down to pick up Amethyst. She squirmed in annoyance from being barred from her mischievous wandering. "Thanks" Delilah said to the Houndoom. It wagged its tail a few times, then hobbled off.

Delilah barely made it to the train on time and sat down quickly, Amethyst still cradled in her arms. Her bags were on the seat in front of her, mainly because she wanted to sit by herself without anyone interrupting her thoughts. The snow and trees and buildings passed by the window in a blur, making Delilah sleepy. She fought to keep her eyes open, but to no avail. She finally fell asleep to the buzz of people talking to one another around her.

_(A/N) This one seemed a bit rushed at the end, or maybe it's just me._


	7. Buried Alive By Love

_(A/N) This chapter's quite short, comparatively, but it's all one long flashback. I figured I needed it to explain some things and slow the story down._

Four years passed since Rose had lost her best friend, who'd been buried beneath the enormous oak tree in the backyard. She kneeled in front of his grave, covered in a layer of dead leaves as late fall approached. There was a chill in the air and it smelled crisp, as if it were about to snow at any moment. She'd been out here for about an hour now and she didn't seem willing to leave any time soon. Her hand stretch out toward the marble gravestone and her delicate fingers traced over the engraved name. The letters were written in a simple font - nothing fancy at all about it. And the only thing written in the stone was his name - Sage. There wasn't a date of his death or any loving words that followed. There were far too many choices for what Rose could have put there, so she decided against doing it at all. She could always just talk to him right here as she did nearly every morning since the day he'd been euthanized for being too mentally unstable.

"It feels like it's been so long..." said Rose, clutching her bathrobe close to her as the wind began blowing. It picked up some leaves and they danced in the air for a moment before scattering over the ground again. "In a way, it has been a long time. But I realized this morning that there are many more years I'm going to have to go through without you here. I wish you hadn't left me..."

She turned her head and looked up at Delilah, who'd just come outside to check up on her lover. She reached out a hand to help her up off the ground, but Rose was reluctant to leave. She shook her head slowly. "I'm not done talking to him" she said in a whisper.

"I think you're letting this get to your head too much" said Delilah, kneeling beside her. "He's been gone for years now... Why can't you just leave him alone now? He would probably want you to move on."

"Don't talk to me like I'm a child" Rose said with venom in her voice. "This whole time I've had to deal with this, and you don't even fucking care. You just want me to forget, but you don't even realize how hard that is. But I guess I can't blame you, seeing as you've never suffered any losses before."

"I've lost you" Delilah said shortly. She rose to her feet and looked down at Rose. "You're not even the same person anymore. What happened to you Rose?"

"I'm hurt, that's what happened. Why is that such a bad thing?"

"Because it's unhealthy and you really need to get over it."

"This isn't something anyone would be able to get over." Rose glared at Delilah.

"I would" said Delilah, losing her patience.

"But I'm not like you."  
  
_"Ugh." Delilah turned around angrily and strode back to the house, slamming the back door on her way in._

"She doesn't understand..." Rose said to the grave, her eyes reddened with fresh tears.

She eventually came back inside and found Delilah sitting on the couch staring at the blank TV screen - she hadn't bothered turning it on because her mind seemed to be stuck on other things. Baby Iris, no more than a year and a half old, was sitting on her lap trying to pull on her long brown hair. Delilah pulled her hair back the best she could with one hand, the other one firmly on Iris' back to keep her from falling. She said nothing as she sat there on the couch, her face expressionless as she bounced the baby on her knee.

"So you're just going to ignore me" said Rose dully. It wasn't even a question.

"No, I'm just pissed" said Delilah in a harsher voice than she'd intended to use. Iris looked at her with big curious green eyes, sucking on her hand and drooling all over her shirt.

"I don't see why you have to be pissed at me. I didn't do anything!"

Delilah sighed. "We already discussed this."

"That doesn't mean it hasn't been resolved" responded Rose, her voice raising in pitch with every word.

"What more is there to say Rose?? I've told you so many times that I'm sick of seeing you sulk after all these years. You need to grow the fuck up. If it upsets you so much, get another fucking pokemon!"

"You don't even understand!" shouted Rose. "I can't get another pokemon. He was my best friend. When one of your friends die, are YOU going to find another one to replace them??"

"That's different!"

"How is that different?!"

The two of them stopped shouting as Iris' voice rang through the living room. Her mouth was wide open as she cried, her hand still in her mouth. Delilah lifted her up and held her against her shoulder, whispering soothing words to the baby. This seemed to have cut the tension for a moment as Rose sat away from Delilah on the armchair and watched her. She seemed like an entirely different person when her motherly side showed. She rocked the baby until her cries died down and she began falling asleep on her shoulder. Delilah got up slowly and went upstairs to put the baby to bed in her crib while Rose waited. She came back down the stairs, but didn't sit back down.

"I'm sick of living with all the tension in this house" said Delilah quietly. The only thing that kept her from shouting was Iris sleeping soundly upstairs.

"Then if you hate it so much, why don't you leave?" said Rose coldly. Both of them at one point in their relationship had threatened to leave, or had told one another to leave, but Rose hadn't planned on it actually happening. When Delilah decided she was going to start packing her things less than two days later, Rose had wished she could take the words back. She apologized and begged and cried, but the older woman was apparently fed up with everything. One late night as the rain came down in an icy torrent, Delilah walked out.

"What happened to 'forever'??" Rose called into the night, baby Iris cradled close to her chest. Delilah turned slowly to look at her, then walked back to the house. She stopped close to Rose, her jeans already soaked from the cold autumn rain.

"That was then, this is now" said Delilah, looking straight into Rose's eyes. "Goodbye Rose."

Delilah left without another look back and was unheard of for nearly 13 years after. Iris grew up to be a beautiful young lady, as Rose had always called her, and she ended up looking exactly like a slender version of Delilah. The boisterous, young-at-heart personality also came with the looks, which rose to the surface when she'd finally gotten her very first pokemon. Rose watched as this Delilah replica went on to live her own life on the road and travel all over the continent, leaving her mother alone at the house for weeks at a time. The loneliness became unbearable enough for her to have gone completely crazy.

Rose had eventually met Richard years later at the Celadon City Game Corner. She'd never been much of a gambler, but there were some very rare pokemon that anyone could buy with enough tokens. So she spent some money on tokens and went about winning even more of them, mostly on the slot machines. She wasn't having much luck, however, up until one particular older man walked into the building. He spotted Rose at the machines and watched her for a moment, then decided to go sit next to her.

"Any luck?" he asked in a friendly voice. Rose turned to him and was suddenly face-to-face with a man that bore a striking resemblance to her father. She couldn't remember much of her father other than the loving blue eyes, which was probably why this feature stuck out so much on this stranger who'd approached her.

"Um, well, no..." she said in a weak voice. She wasn't used to talking to random strangers on an otherwise ordinary day. '"I was trying to win some tokens to buy a pokemon for my daughter, but... well... I swear it's the machine that's doing it."

Richard laughed. His voice didn't sound gruff or arrogant, but soft and smooth. "I could help you out" he said. "Err, unless your husband is here somewhere...?"

"Husband?" asked Rose, taken by surprise. She often forgot that her sexual preferences weren't all that obvious to most people. "Oh. Um. I don't have a husband. I don't even have a significant other. Well... at the moment they're... somewhere. I'm not sure where."

"He left you" Richard said shortly.

"Um, yeah. I'm the only one raising my daughter right now, and I figured since it's been tough with money and all that I'd get her something nice. An early birthday of sorts."

"That's very sweet of you" said Richard. "It must be hard work taking care of a child by yourself. How old is she?"

"She's 12 right now. Her birthday is in two weeks though."

Richard looked thoughtful as he leaned against the slot machine next to him. "My only son would be her age right around now. But my wife lives with him right now." Rose looked confused for a moment. "Oh, I guess I should explain. My wife moved out after we'd been married for about twenty years. We just couldn't deal with living with each other anymore. We've set up our own little system of joint custody on our son, as much as I don't even like calling it that. She's an avid Christian, so she doesn't believe in divorce. I haven't seen her in years though."

"Wow" said Rose. "That's... quite a story."

"And what's your story?" asked Richard.

"Um. I guess almost the same as yours, though my... significant other hasn't been around to help raise our daughter... Umm, I didn't catch your name."

"I didn't give it." There was now an amused look on his face, but it turned into a sincerely friendly smile. "My name's Richard."

"And I'm Rose."

"It suits you to be named after such a pretty flower" the man responded. Rose blushed as he said this, and he laughed. "So how about I help you out with your dilemma? I mean with your daughter's birthday present. I've had some pretty good luck on these machines myself, and I have some money to spare."

"I guess if you want to," said Rose, "go right ahead then. But you really don't have to. I don't like when people pity me."

"Who says I'm pitying you?" asked Richard. "You look like you could use some help and I'm offering it."

He got up and went straight to the counter at the front of the enormous room where he cashed in some money for tokens. He came back with a bagful and sat back down. As if he'd been doing this for years, he casually slipped three tokens into the machine and pulled the lever. The machine flashed with many different colored lights and in an instant, he won back ten more tokens. Rose looked at him with raised eyebrows.

"It's not so hard" he said shortly, putting in three more tokens. After twenty more minutes' worth of playing, he ended up with almost three times the amount he'd started with. Most of it went toward Rose to add to her measly collection, and she thanked him over and over again. She had it counted out at the front counter and had just enough to buy either a Pikachu or a Porygon.

"Hmm" said Richard as he weighed the choices in his mind. "I would go with the Porygon mainly because it's so rare and a Pikachu can be caught easily in the wild if your daughter really wants one. And Porygon can learn a lot of powerful moves." Rose agreed to his suggestion and was given the brand-new Porygon in its own pokeball.

"Thank you so much" said Rose as the two of them walked out of the building. "This is so weird... I hardly know you... What made you do this for me?"

They stopped in front of her house and Richard turned to face her. "I guess I just like helping people out" he said with a shrug. "I've gone through some hard times too. I know what it's like. It's sad to think that so many other people have gone through the same thing, so I guess it's in my nature to be so... kind, you could say."

Rose nodded. "Well thank you Richard, it was very nice of you. I don't know how I can repay you, but I will."

"You don't have to."

"But I want to" Rose responded with a smile. "Again, thank you. I take it I'll be seeing you again?"

"I'll be around" Richard said.

They bid each other goodbye and went their separate ways for the time being. But Rose would see him no more than a week later and after getting to know each other, and after he'd gotten to know Iris, he decided to become a sort of father toward the girl. He knew there was no way he would become involved in a relationship with Rose, but he nevertheless continued to contribute to the small family and visit frequently. This helped her a bit with the healing process, but in a way it also made it worse - it made her miss Delilah even more somehow. She soon fell back into her routine of waiting for her lover to come back, though something in the back of her mind was constantly telling her that it would never happen.


	8. Bring Me to Life

"I guess it wasn't a dream then" said Iris, admiring the picture of the large blue bird she'd drawn the night before. It didn't look nearly as graceful or beautiful as the real thing, but at least she had proof that she'd seen it. She took the time to add a little more detail to it, shading it in and even adding in the sparkles that trailed behind its streamer-like tail. Breakfast was ready for her downstairs just as she closed the sketchpad. She shook Kane gently to wake him up. He yawned loudly and turned away from her, curling up in a tighter ball.

"Come on Kane" Iris said with a laugh. "It's Christmas Eve tonight. We need to get everything all set up." He opened one eye and looked at her, then got up reluctantly and yawned again. He hopped off the bed and followed Iris down the stairs to the dining room.

"I made your favorite" said Rose, setting a huge stack of pancakes on a plate down in front of one of the chairs. An enormous bottle of maple syrup was put in the middle of the table for everyone to use. Richard sat down in front of his own tower of pancakes.

"Christmas Eve tonight kiddo" he said. "Excited yet?"

"I will be once I wake up" said Iris. She grabbed the bottle of syrup before anyone else could and drowned her pancakes with it, then put it back. Rose sat down next to her with her plate of food, which always had a lot less than everyone else. Iris watched her from the corner of her eye and could see that the woman was still bothered by whatever it was that had been bothering her last night. Her face was expressionless as she pushed her food around her plate before finally deciding to eat some.

"Oh, I just remembered!" said Iris, perking up a bit. Rose turned to look at her. "I saw this really cool pokemon outside last night. It was in our yard."

"Oh?" said Richard with a mouthful of pancake. He waited to swallow it all before speaking again. "What kind?"

"I have no clue what it is, but I drew a picture of it when I was able to get close. It was some huge blue bird with sparkly feathers."

Richard was thoughtful for a moment, then said "I've heard of something like that, but I doubt it was anywhere near here."

"What's it called?" asked Iris.

"Articuno. But those live on Ice Island, south of here unbelievably. It's not nearly cold enough here for such a pokemon to be roaming around, and we're pretty far away anyway. Articuno don't migrate for any reason."

"Well... What other pokemon could it be?"

"There are pokemon that aren't native to here that may end up here for some reason or another" said Richard. "The only large blue bird pokemon I could think of is called Altaria, but I don't think it sparkles when it flies."

The remainder of breakfast was spent debating what the pokemon that had visited them that night could possibly be. Rose had even contributed a bit with her own ideas. The argument got to the point where the three of them were even doubting it was a _blue_ bird pokemon - likely a Pidgeot or a Noctowl. Then it shifted even further when they speculated that it might not have even been a bird - maybe it was a Dragonite - but Iris didn't want to be swayed her argument that far. She remembered the picture and clearly seeing the bird with its brilliant sapphire plumage and wingspan almost as wide as the house. She even grabbed the sketchpad from her room and showed it to Richard. He seemed to have believed her for a moment, but still could not find the logic behind the event of such a pokemon roaming around Celadon City.

"Would this explain the snowfall?" Iris asked after taking her sketchpad back.

"That has been proven to happen with Articuno," said Richard, "but as I've said before, why would one be way over here where we live?"

"Maybe something's going on in its natural habitat. I've heard of something like that before. Pokemon migrate when something or someone is damaging their habitat."

"But what could it be?" asked Richard.

"Global warming?" Iris said jokingly.

Richard chuckled. "Well, we shouldn't worry too much about this. We need to get some last-minute things done for tonight. Your mother is fussing about getting all the decorations up. Why this is, I'll never understand. I'm the only one coming to visit and I don't fancy sparkly decorations anyway. I suppose she just likes to stick to tradition." He sighed. "Come on, we can start putting garlands up around the house."

Before either of them knew it, it was late afternoon and the entire interior of the house was sparkling and twinkling with lights and garlands and bulbs of all colors. The star had finally been put on the top of the tree and the only thing lighting the living room was the tree itself. They all sat down in the quiet living room and listened to some music on the radio, which had been moved from the kitchen. A classic Beach Boys Christmas song was playing as Rose brought them their lunch, which consisted of grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup. Kane helped bring some trays in as well and then sat down on his usual spot on the armchair.

"You might as well put your name on that chair Kane" said Iris with a laugh. Kane was too occupied with lapping up his piping hot soup to pay attention - being a fire-type, it didn't burn his mouth nearly as much as it should have.

"When are you heading out to finish getting your badges?" This was the first time Rose had actually brought up a topic to talk about all day. It was random, which probably meant she was doing it to get her mind off of things.

"I dunno actually" responded Iris after swallowing a bite of grilled cheese. "I guess I could stay another month or so, just until it stops snowing so much. It sucks traveling in the snow with no pokemon to carry me."

"You should get one soon then" said Rose. She was picking apart her sandwich subconsciously. "Which pokemon do you have?"

"Well I have Kane." Iris used her sandwich to point at the pokemon. "When he evolves he can carry me around, but that won't be for a while since he _just_ evolved the other night. I just caught a Sandshrew before I made my way over here and I'm working on making her stronger. I still have the Porygon you gave me for my birthday last year. I have Azumarill, which I guess is helpful 'cause she can carry me across water. I don't like traveling like that though. I'd rather take a boat. Hmm. Someone traded me a Heracross, which is pretty strong. And then I have Magnemite and Drowzee."

"That's quite a variety" noted Richard.

"Yeah, I figured it'd help me out if I had all different types" said Iris.

"Which is advantageous. But the only pokemon that would really help you out with your next badge is Drowzee and Kane. You might want to try and catch some more types to use."

"Oh yeah" said Iris. "The next gym is grass-type, right?"

"Yep" Richard said shortly.

"And most grass-types in that gym are going to be poison-type too, which is why I need Drowzee, right?"

"Yes. You know more than I thought." Richard smiled. "Most people miss that little factor even though type match-ups is common knowledge."

"Good luck by the way" Rose chimed in. She was finally eating some of the broken up pieces of her sandwich, but she didn't fancy dipping them into her soup like everyone else. She instead ate them separately, saving the soup for last.

"Do you hear that?" asked Richard suddenly. The room went quiet as they tried to listen for whatever sound he'd been talking about.

"No, I don't..." whispered Rose.

_Whoosh._

"I hear it!" said Iris, jumping to her feet. "That's what I heard last night when the Articuno showed up!" She went to grab her coat and boots.

"Are you sure it isn't just wind?" asked Richard, reluctant to move away from his food.

"No. Come on Kane" said Iris once she shrugged into her coat. Kane took a few more sips of his soup before hopping off the chair and following the other two into the kitchen and out the back door. Richard followed suit and then Rose. She was the last one out, struggling into her coat as she walked out into the cold.

The swooping sound had stopped for a moment and the four of them stood there listening. They looked around them and searched the skies, but couldn't see or hear anything. There wasn't even any wind. It was completely silent for a good five minutes and in that time, Iris began to feel like an idiot. It may have been a simple gust of wind, but she'd been so quick to prove to everyone that she'd seen this legendary pokemon that she didn't even consider any other possibilities. They finally decided to turn around and head back to the house, which was when the sound had come back.

_Whoosh._

The Articuno came out of virtually nowhere and with such grace that there was no rush of air in its wake whatsoever. It landed in a flurry of sparkles beside the oak tree a few yards away, folding its enormous wings. The group stared in awe at its beautiful blue feathers and the sparkly tail that trailed nearly ten feet behind it. It called out in a singsong voice, but didn't move from its spot. Instead, it watched the four of them intently as if turning over the options in its head to either stay or flee. Iris stepped forward, her mouth hanging open in amazement.

"Careful..." said Richard quietly.

She walked toward the pokemon slowly, the only sound being that of the crunching of the snow beneath her feet. She made it about two feet from Articuno and stopped to look at it. It tilted its head curiously, then sat down comfortably in the snow. Seeing this as a welcoming gesture, she walked a little closer and kneeled beside it. But she was hesitant to touch it - she was afraid it would just fly away again if she tried. Rose was next to try and get closer to it. She stepped forward just as Iris did and kept going until she was right behind her.

"How in the world did it get here though?" Richard asked incredulously. He followed behind Rose and put an arm around her, watching the bird preen its feathers. Kane kept his distance, growling quietly as he watched the Articuno closely.

"It's okay Kane" said Iris. "It's not gonna hurt you." Kane, still reluctant even as Iris reassured him, slowly hobbled over to her and sat down. They were all just a few feet away from the Articuno, Iris being the closest to it.

"Well, this sure is something" said Richard. "I guess you were right Iris."

"But what is it doing here?" Rose asked.

"I don't know, but something serious has to be going on if it took the time to travel all the way up here. Maybe something really is destroying its habitat."

"I'm willing to bet it's Team Rocket" said Rose.

"I'm going to get some pokedex info on it" said Iris. She took the said item out of her back pocket where she always kept it for occasions such as this. She pointed it at the Articuno and pressed a button. The familiar electronic voice came on, explaining the key points about the pokemon:

_Articuno: The Freeze Pokemon. This legendary bird Pokémon is said to appear to doomed people who are lost in icy mountains. The flapping of its wings chills the air. As a result, when this Pokémon flies, snow will fall._

"Then it really is the reason for all this snow. It never snows this much in winter." Iris, after seeing that the bird was comfortable and not willing to leave any time soon, stretched out her hand slowly to pet its blue feathers. It watched her closely as her hand approached, and then a soft trilling sound came from its throat when her fingers ran lightly over its stomach - it sounded almost like a purr. She smiled and ran her fingers through the silky feathers, then smoothed them out with her palm.

"I guess it likes you then" Richard said with a laugh. He kneeled down next to Iris, but didn't try to build up the courage to pet the Articuno - he would rather observe and admire it while he had the chance. His eyes were practically glowing; unless, of course, it was merely the reflection of the snow in the light mixed with the bright sapphire plummage of the pokemon in front of him.

"I'm going inside, it's way too cold out here" Rose said with effort, trying not to let her teeth chatter. She turned around and trekked through the snow, which was not so powdery today because the temperature had dropped. She made it to the stairs and climbed up them quickly, eager to get back inside where it was much warmer. Above her, some little piles of snow fell off the roof. She ignored it and kept walking toward the back door, only to be stopped when a large chunk of frozen snow came down and hit her clear on the head. She stumbled backward and fell, being knocked out cold from the impact.

"ROSE!!" yelled Richard, seeing this from where he sat. He got up and ran to the front porch. The Articuno got to its feet quickly and put its wings out, startled by the sudden outburst. It squawked in annoyance. Iris sprang up as well, scaring the bird into backing away quickly. It stood further behind the oak tree, glaring at the girl as she ran to her mother. Kane, who had been digging a little snow tunnel out of boredom, followed everyone to see what was going on. He ran as fast as he could on four legs, which wasn't something a Charmeleon is very accustomed to, until he was up on the porch with everyone else.

"Call an ambulance" said Richard, checking for the extent of the damage. He looked like he was on the brink of panic. "I'll bring her inside and lay her down somewhere." With a bit of a struggle because of his bad back, he managed to pick Rose up off the ground and move her inside where he placed her gently on the couch. Iris did as she had been told and dialed 9-1-1 quickly. She explained the ordeal as much as she could to the woman on the other line and asked for an ambulance to be sent.

"Tell her she's bleeding pretty bad too" Richard said suddenly. He rushed into the bathroom to grab a towel and when he came back, he pressed it again the side of her head where the blood was practically pouring out.

"She's bleeding all over the place" Iris said, her voice cracking. "But my... um, m-my dad's got a towel and he's trying to stop the bleeding."

"Alright, don't panic. It's going to take a while for the ambulance to arrive because of the blizzard, but try to remain calm" The woman had a rough, business-like voice - not the kind of voice that would calm anyone down in this kind of situation. "With enough pressure, the bleeding should stop. Head wounds always bleed much more than others. Is the victim breathing?" she asked before Iris could ask "What blizzard?"

"I'll check" said Iris, kneeling beside her mother. She could clearly see her chest rising and falling steadily, as if she were sleeping. She also checked for a pulse, which was there, so she reported this to the woman on the phone.

"And is she positioned on her back?" the woman asked. "She needs to be lying on her back to open up the airways." Iris double-checked.

"Yeah" Iris answered shortly.

"Alright. Don't try to move her at all. If you can, shake her gently once in a while to see if she'll wake up, but don't be overly persistent. She's very likely to wake up on her own. We'll send an ambulance, just be patient." She finally hung up with a quick goodbye.

The question that had been burning in Iris' mind was soon answered when she ran to the front window and pulled the curtain open - snow was falling rapidly, already covering up a bit of what had been shoveled the previous day, and there was a relentless gust of wind that blew it all over the place. She turned away from the window and went into the kitchen to look out that window. The Articuno was gone and any evidence of its appearance had been covered up by the snowfall.

"The ambulance is gonna have a hard time getting here" Iris said to Richard, coming back into the living room. Kane had climbed up on the couch and attempted to curl up beside the unconscious woman to keep her warm, but he was just barely small enough to lay there without laying completely on top of her.

"Thanks Kane" said Iris, petting him on the head. "I hope that ambulance gets here soon."

Richard still had the towel pressed against Rose's head, but the bleeding seemed to be slowing down rapidly. He looked thoroughly worried and would look out the window every five minutes to check for any signs of the ambulance. Eventually, the windows had fogged up and the snow was falling so hard that it was like a pure white blanket had been thrown over Celadon City. No one could be seen walking to and fro outside like they did on any ordinary day. There wasn't even a sign of a single pokemon, wild or otherwise. It was also getting dark very quickly.

"Do you think the Articuno did this?" asked Iris, standing near the window and watching the snow nervously. "I mean all this snowfall. Do you think it was angry enough at us for scaring it to do this?"

"I wouldn't say it's anger" responded Richard. "The pokemon is stressed from being forced out of its home. And it didn't help much that we both scared it earlier."

"Yeah..." said Iris with a sigh. Things seemed to have been getting progressively worse since she'd come back to her mother's house, not even counting this current situation. She couldn't remember ever having this much snow during any Christmas week she'd spent here and she always assumed that Team Rocket was almost completely driven out of Kanto, but it seemed they were planning something big now. She could almost feel it coming, but she didn't know what it was that they were planning or if they'd even put that plan into action already. She sighed again and sat on the coffee table to watch the snow without her feet getting tired. The lunch from earlier, all half-eaten, was still sitting on the table.

"It's getting really late" Iris said after an hour and a half of waiting. "Do you think something happened to the ambulance?"

"It's possible" said Richard. He was laying his head back on the armchair and was slowly falling asleep. The bloody towel was resting loosely against Rose's head, but the bleeding had finally stopped. Her hair was matted and cakes over with dried blood and her face was a bit paler than usual. Kane had already fallen asleep after the first ten minutes of anxious waiting. He stirred a bit in his sleep, as if he could really sense the tension and anxiety in the room.

"I'm calling again" said Iris, standing up and grabbing the phone. She dialed 9-1-1 and waited, pacing the floor with the phone against her ear.

"Hello, what's your emergency?" asked a voice quickly. It sounded like the same woman from earlier.

"Um, yeah" Iris began lamely. "I called earlier about someone who'd been knocked unconscious from a chunk of ice that fell on her from the roof... Um, is the ambulance on it's way...?"

"We've gotten a call from the ambulance we sent out." the woman said. "They got into an accident trying to rush to your house. We can't send out any more ambulances if all they're going to do is crash from the slippery roads, but you can call here whenever anything has changed."

"That would be a huge help" said Iris. She couldn't understand why she felt relieved all of a sudden - her mother had been unconscious for two hours now, which is exactly what she told the woman over the phone.

"It may take her a while to wake up, but as long as she's breathing and has a pulse then it'll be fine. We've ordered some pokemon to try and make the trip to your house with a few well-trained doctors, which is better than nothing. They'll be there as soon as they can."

"Where are you sending them from?" Iris asked.

"Saffron City, which is why it's taking so long. But they will be there as soon as they can."

"Okay" said Iris. They said their goodbyes again and Iris sat back down on the coffee table.

"Chaaaaar" said Kane as he let out a huge yawn, finally waking up. He opened his eyes and looked at the woman worriedly.

"Someone will be on the way" Iris said to him. "I just hope it's soon..." She looked back out the window into the darkness, seeing nothing but falling snow and the dim lights coming from some buildings.

"Char char?" said Kane, carefully getting down off the couch and walking over to the window. He pressed his nose against the glass and peered at the snowy scenery.

"This makes me wish you_ could_ fly Kane" Iris said with a sigh.

"I'm sure everything will be fine" said Richard, though his voice wasn't very assuring. "I'm going to bed because this damn chair is killing my back. I'm sure I can trust you to watch over your mother and make sure she'll be okay."

"Yeah" said Iris. She was still looking out the window.

"Well, goodnight. Though it isn't so much a_ good _night..." Richard got up slowly, stretched, and went into the bedroom to sleep without another word.

"Too bad Edward couldn't have stayed" Iris said to Kane, her thoughts drifting elsewhere. "He would have been stranded here with me."

"Char" Kane said shortly. He seemed mesmerized by all the snow, which hadn't yet stopped piling up around the house. Iris could already see that they would be breaking their backs again over shoveling it all away tomorrow. But at least they would all have some presents to look forward to in the morning. That is, if the team of doctors could possibly make it through the storm to help her mother. Iris turned her head to look at the unconscious Rose, making sure she was still breathing. Her chest was still rising and falling slowly as it had been the whole time.

Iris had eventually fallen asleep in the armchair, laying sideways and letting her legs dangle off the side. Kane had curled up under the table, having lost rights to his favorite sleeping spot for the night. They didn't sleep for very long before a knock at the door woke them up. Iris got up groggily, and very slowly so she wouldn't be too dizzy. She stood up and stretched as whoever was on the other side of the door knocked again.

"Coming" she said, making her way around the coffee table and to the door. She opened the door and came face-to-face with an older woman who bore a striking resemblance to the girl.

"Um, is Rose there?" she said, adjusting the bag on her back. A Pidgeot, obviously belonging to her, stood behind her preening its feathers as it waited to be let in.

"Yeah..." said Iris. She was still a little sleepy. "Are you one of the doctors?"

"Hmm. Last time I checked I wasn't a doctor... My name's Delilah, and I'm one of Rose's... friends. I came to visit for Christmas."


	9. Come Down

"Sir, the pokemon has escaped." The voice came from a darkly-tanned man with muscular arms. He walked into the room and looked around with chocolate colored eyes, seeing other men dressed in uniform much like himself. They looked at him as if he were the biggest joke in the world. He retaliated with a scowl, then looked to his leader. He sat in a huge armchair with his legs crossed casually. His faithful pokemon Persian sat beside him, purring as his hand stroked the soft fur on its head.

"Always one to point out the obvious, aren't we?" the leader said. He took a sip of the scotch in his hand, the ice cubes clinking together. Everyone in the room looked at him silently as they did every time he was talking.

"You weren't there when it happened" the tan man retorted. He crossed his large arms over his equally large chest, feeling as though he had already won this battle. The men in the room all looked at him in disbelief. Some shook their heads as if in disapproval toward his behavior around their leader, and others looked amused.

The leader put his glass down on a small table next to him and then let his hands rest on the arms of the chair. "Someone already told me" he responded in a calm voice - it sounded more like a forced calm. "Someone apparently more competent than you, Derrick. He and three other men were there when it happened, none of which were you. You cannot stand here and lie to me. You heard it from someone and decided to play the hero and come tell me about it. If you continue trying to take credit for other people's work, I will have you demoted... _again._ Do I make myself clear?"

"... Yes" Derrick said shortly.

The leader continued. "I knew this would happen, which is why I am not disappointed. This pokemon is an evasive one, and if we hope to catch it then we'll need a much better strategy. We've driven it out of its home, which has proven useful since it's moved to a more closed-in area. It's easier to catch. But we need patience. We need to find out where it is first before we go in head-first."

"Excuse me s-sir...?" interrupted one of the men in the room. He was a scrawny, nervous-looking man with short hair. Everyone turned to look at him, and the leader nodded as a cue for him to speak. "Um, w-well... There's been reports of ongoing blizzards in Celadon City... I was thinking... Maybe the Articuno is doing it?"

The leader had a faint trace of a smirk on his face. "You're not as much of an idiot as I made you out to be James. Thank you for that. Is there anything else you'd like to share?"

"We have someone stationed there" said James. "In Celadon City I mean. We could call him up and have him keep an eye out on things there..."

"That sounds excellent" said the leader, thoroughly impressed. "This isn't like you to be so... intuitive. There's a reward in store if you prove yourself useful on this mission. As for the rest of you... Gather up any members stationed on the island and have them come back here. I'll decide what to do next from there. Go."

Everyone in the room stood up from their seats, which were set in a semicircle around the leader's chair. They moved out of the room in a single unit, pushing through Derrick as if he weren't there at all. James was the last to leave the room, and he looked as if he had just won the lottery. Derrick spent a moment looking at his leader, who picked up his glass of scotch and took a slow sip. He put it back down carefully and said "You'd better get going Derrick. You wouldn't want to miss out on another opportunity for failure." The smirk was much more prominent now, and Derrick wished more than anything that he could knock the man's head clear off in one blow - given the size of his fists, he probably could. But he simply glared in response and then turned to walk out the door.

* * *

Rose's mind slipped in and out of consciousness countless times since she'd hit her head outside, and in that time she dreamed of Delilah's warm, comforting hand caressing her face softly. It was like the touch of an angel and it made her feel perfectly safe. But when she brought her hand up to touch the angel's hand, it pulled away and left her alone and cold. She reached out and called for her, but there was no response. Nothing but an empty, black void that seemed to be trying to suffocating her.

"Delilah, come back, please" she cried. She couldn't see and she felt utterly helpless. Was she dreaming? She couldn't feel any solid ground beneath her feet, but it didn't feel like she was falling either. It felt like she was simply floating around in space, unable to go anywhere or do anything.

"I'm right here love, don't worry." The hand came back to caress her face and play with her hair. She smiled, or at least tried to - it felt as though her entire body had gone numb. She couldn't tell if she were experiencing a dream or reality, and she had no clue just how much time had passed while Delilah whispered soothing words to her, but she never wanted it to end.

"Does this mean you'll stay?" Rose muttered into the void. "Forever?" It came out like an eerie echo. The angel didn't answer her, but she still felt the warm hand on her face. It disappeared for a moment - maybe she'd fallen asleep again - before she finally opened her eyes. She gasped when she saw beautiful emerald eyes staring back at her that didn't belong to her daughter. This definitely had to have been a dream.

"Well, this is a strange way to meet again" said Delilah with an amused smirk - she hadn't changed a bit.

"Meet? Wh-what?" Rose was still disoriented and felt like she was still floating around in the endless void of nothingness. She struggled to sit up.

"No, don't Rose" said Delilah in a gentle voice. Her smirk disappeared and was replaced with a look of sincere worry. She put a hand on her shoulder and got her to lay back down slowly. "Your head got pretty banged up. I've been here for quite a few hours now. The snow got really bad, so the ambulance couldn't get here. They sent some doctors here instead to make sure you were okay. And you wouldn't wake up for a long time... I really thought something bad had happened to you." Her voice faltered on the last couple of words.

"I'm... fine..." whispered Rose. It was all she could think of to say until her thoughts unclouded and everything around her stopped being so fuzzy. "Wh-where's Sage?"

"Sage...?" asked Delilah. "Rose... Sage isn't here... I think you need some rest."

"N-no... Sage... He's waiting for me outside."

Delilah pulled the covers up over Rose and rubbed her back gently. "Sage isn't here anymore. You've known this for years. Get some sleep, please."

Rose turned away from her and sobbed into her pillow, finally realizing that Sage really wasn't around anymore. He wasn't waiting for her at all. Her thoughts were so disoriented that she'd actually thought she was 16 years old again and her best friend was still alive. She cringed away from Delilah's hand on her shoulder, thinking it was just another illusion. A dream. Her consciousness slowly slipped away again as she fell into a deep and dreamless sleep. She woke up what seemed like moments after and found Delilah laying next to her and stroking her hair.

"You alright now?" she asked, moving some of the hair out of the way of Rose's face.

"I don't know..." Rose answered in a whisper, looking up into Delilah's eyes.

"Well... Merry Christmas." Delilah smiled weakly, trying to brighten the mood.

"You left" Rose said shortly, her voice finally coming back.

"I did. But I'm back now. I missed you too much to stay away for so long."

"It may have not been long enough for you-"

"I know, I know" Delilah interrupted. She pulled Rose closer to her and wrapped her arms tight around her slender body. "You have no clue how much I've hated myself for doing it."

"I hate _you_ for doing it."

"Ouch."

The two of them were silent as Rose listened to Delilah's steady heartbeat. She may have been angry at her for leaving, but she missed the comforting sound of her lover's heartbeat more than anything. It reminded her of one night when it was so stormy outside that the power went out and she couldn't see more than an inch in front of her own nose. They stayed in the living room where they felt the safest, lying close beside each other on the couch. Rose rested her head on Delilah's chest and listened to the thumping of her heartbeat. They stayed here for hours on end without saying a word, simply enjoying each other's company and the feeling of being so deeply in love.

"Did you really mean that?" Delilah asked. Her voice cut through the silence and brought Rose back to reality.

"Mean what?" she asked, her voice muffled a bit from snuggling into her chest.

"Do you really hate me for all this?"

Rose sat up, the dizziness having finally left her. She couldn't seem to look into Delilah's eyes right now and instead looked down. "I did, at first. But then I just... fell into this depression... And I'd wait for you. I always have. But I don't hate you, and I'm sorry that I said that... I kept telling myself you'd come back someday, but... it took you so long... Why?"

"I didn't know how to approach you after what had happened" said Delilah. "I was afraid you'd hate me and just... push me away. And I was hoping I could force myself to... move on I guess. I wanted to forget all that'd happened, forget about us..."

"What about Iris...?" Rose asked.

"I feel horrible leaving her with you" said Delilah. She let go of Rose and lifted her chin up gently to allow their eyes to meet. "I wish you would at least look at me... I'm so glad you have Richard to help you take care of Iris. I regret more than anything not being able to be in his place right now. I didn't even have the chance to watch her grow up, and it's all my fault..." Her voice cracked and she tried to blink back tears, but Rose could see this even in the dim light. She wrapped her arms around Delilah's neck and snuggled into her chest, sobbing quietly.

There was a soft knock on the door and Delilah sat up a bit as the door opened. Rose turned around, seeing Richard standing in the doorway with the light from the dining room pouring in. "I'm so glad you're alright" he said, walking over to the bed and kissing Rose on the forehead. "You were bleeding so much..."

"I'm fine now though" said Rose. But it was a lie. She wasn't fine at all. Her body felt empty and her heart shattered, just as she'd felt the day Delilah had left her all those years ago. It seemed as though all these feelings were coming back to her now that Delilah had shown up so suddenly with no warning whatsoever. It was like having something she wanted so dearly hanging just within grasp - that little piece of Heaven that she just couldn't seem to reach.

"Mom!" said Iris, coming into the room behind Richard. She gave her mom a gentle hug, trying not to touch her head. It was bandaged up with a thick layer of white gauze and medical tape that was wrapped around her forehead to keep it on.

Delilah, feeling awkward in a room full of people only Rose knew, decided to strike up a conversation. "Haven't I met you before?" she asked Richard.

"Yes you have, actually" he said. "You were the woman I fought outside the Goldenrod City gym. I was the one who had just gotten the Plain Badge, but then you defeated me with no problem at all. You're pretty formidable, and I like your tactics. That Nidoqueen of yours is pretty strong."

"Umm, thanks" said Delilah.

"Nidoqueen?" asked Rose, sitting up as well.

"Yeah, Jade's evolved all the way" Delilah responded.

"If you're up to it, you can help put presents under the tree" said Richard. "I'd rather you get some rest Rose, but you've always loved helping out with any Christmas things."

"What time is it?" asked Rose. She sat up straighter and stretched. She definitely didn't feel like going back to sleep - it felt like she'd been asleep for years.

"It's almost 2 in the morning" Iris answered.

"Come on, we'll get started" Richard said to Iris. "You can meet us out here whenever you want Rose. You can come help too, umm... I didn't catch your name."

"I didn't give it" Delilah said shortly.

"Her name's Delilah" Rose said with impatience in her voice. Richard shrugged, then walked out of the room.

"Don't start with your sarcastic bullshit" said Rose when Richard was out of earshot.

Delilah ignored it. "Come on, I'll help out with the presents. Um, I have one for you."

"I don't see why you bothered. I didn't get you one."

"Doesn't matter" said Delilah. "I figured you needed it. I might have to give it to you early though. It's... sort of wandering around the house."

Rose raised an eyebrow. "What the hell did you get me? No... no no no, don't tell me... You didn't get me a pokemon..." She cupped her hands over her face and sighed in frustration.

"You need one" Delilah said with a slight smirk on her face. "They make pretty good companions when you're lonely. And hey, you got yourself a nighttime cuddle-buddy too." She looked like she was about to burst into laughter.

"I don't think you're funny" Rose said, glaring at her.

"Come on, we gotta go help out the old guy."

Rose refrained from arguing with the woman any further and instead, walked out of the room and into a little hallway right next door that led toward the cellar. There were stacks of presents waiting to be put under the tree and Rose grabbed a few and walked right past Delilah without a word. She followed suit and put them under the tree in the living room. The job was done in only two trips, seeing as there weren't many present to be handed out.

"I like the tree" said Delilah, admiring the decorations.

"Thanks" said Iris when Rose refused to answer.

"Alright, well, I'm going back to bed" said Richard. "Goodnight guys."

"Guess that means me too" said Iris. "'Night Mom." She headed upstairs and shut her bedroom door behind her, leaving Rose and Delilah alone in the living room.

"So how are we going to tell her?" asked Rose, staring out the window at the blizzard.

"About me?" asked Delilah, sitting down next to Rose.

"Yes." Rose was quiet and still refused to look at Delilah. She moved a few inches away from Delilah. Her arms were crossed and she seemed to have a permanent scowl on her face, but she looked dead serious.

"Whenever you feel she's ready I guess" said Delilah. "Only you would know how well she'd take it, seeing as you've been with her longer."

"I'd rather not" said Rose. "Not when it's Christmas. We have to wait for a better time."

"So I take it you're not gonna kick me out for good once Christmas is over?"

"... No."

The two of them fell silent, and they merely sat there and stared out the window at the ongoing blizzard. It didn't look like the snow was about to stop any time soon, but it was piled almost up to the window now. The Articuno that they had all seen the previous day had not shown itself since it'd been scared away, and it probably wasn't coming back. This reminded Rose about what she'd suggested about Team Rocket being the reason why the pokemon had traveled all the way over here - they were probably messing with its habitat on Ice Island somehow.

"Team Rocket's back you know" Rose said suddenly.

"So I heard" said Delilah. They continued to stare out the window, willing themselves not to look at each other. It seemed as though they were trying to see who would give in under the pressure first.

"One of them came to the house here looking for something" Rose continued. "The man in the trenchcoat..."

"I remember him. He most likely remembers you too. But we always seem to end up in a shithole every time we decide to interfere with Team Rocket, so we have to be careful. Besides, I don't feel like playing the knight in shining armor _again_."

"And you think I can't fend for myself?" said Rose, finally turning to Delilah. She looked annoyed.

"I _know_ you can't" Delilah responded. "You always tend to attract the worst of luck, especially with Team Rocket."

Rose sighed, already seeing where this conversation was headed, and decided to change the subject. "You said you got me a pokemon."

"I did."

"Well... Where is it? I'd rather not let it wander around the house if it's going to make a mess."

Delilah stood up and stretched, then said "I'll look for her then." She disappeared into the dining room and didn't come back for a good five minutes. When she finally did come back, she had a big, fluffy ball of fur in her arms. She let the pokemon down on the couch next to Rose.

"What is that thing?" asked Rose, moving away a bit.

"It's a pokemon called Stunky" said Delilah. "It's not a cat, it's a skunk. But I figured you'd like it, just as a pet to have around the house. I named her Amethyst."

"Amethyst...?" asked Rose. "Th-that's..." She couldn't bring herself to say that it was the sweetest thing anyone had ever done for her in years, and she was still feeling stubborn after the previous argument, so she stumbled over her words until she decided to give up and just not finish the sentence.

"She tends to get into things though" said Delilah. She sat back on the couch with the pokemon in between her and Rose. "But she doesn't misbehave. It's mostly curiosity." Rose reached her hand out slowly to pet Amethyst, who leaned happily into her hand. She climbed up on Rose's lap and sniffed her all over before finally curling up into a ball and falling asleep.

"She's cute" said Rose. "Thanks." She looked at Delilah and smiled, forgetting ever being mad at her.

"Heh, whatever gets you to smile" Delilah responded. "Unfortunately, I haven't slept as much as you have, so I think I'm gonna try to get some sleep. Umm, where can I go?"

"You can sleep right out here on the couch" said Rose. "Richard sleeps in my room sometimes."

Delilah looked confused. "Uh, aren't you and him...?"

"Dating? No. We're best friends is all. But he's helped me take care of Iris for a few years now. He visits on the holidays and on her birthday, and he's been a huge help. I guess you could say he's the father she's never had."

"At least she has someone like him" Delilah said silently. She looked over at the tree and pretended to be interested in all the presents under it, but Rose knew better.

"Something's wrong" she said shortly. She didn't even have to ask.

"I just wish I could be in his place" said Delilah, turning back to Rose. "I wish I could be the one here for Iris, the one to watch her grow up and to be here for her birthdays and the holidays... You have no idea how awful I feel."

Rose moved over carefully, trying not to wake the pokemon in her lap, and sat close to Delilah. They were so close that their bodies were touching, but neither of them seemed bothered by it. They sat in silence, Rose looking at her lap and Delilah watching her. She wished she could say something, anything, but no words seemed to be the right ones to say. She wrapped an arm around Rose, who rested her head on her shoulder without saying anything. They remained like that for about an hour before Delilah finally fell asleep sitting up, her head laying on Rose's.


	10. Broken Bones

Christmas morning came with bright morning sunshine that hadn't been expected from anyone. It quickly began melting the snow away, though it would probably take days before it was all gone. It shimmered brilliantly over the surface of the snow, making sparkly rainbow reflections everywhere. The Articuno seemed to have moved on, but no one had the vaguest clue where it could have gone. They would probably never see it again, and Iris was thankful as well as lucky to have been able to draw a picture of the bird before it left. She sat up in her room after having opened her presents. Richard bought her two books that he thought she'd like and her mother bought her a new sketchpad and some paints in case she wanted to try them out. Iris had never painted before, but she decided to at least try. It would help pass the time, seeing as she wasn't too keen on going out in the snow again.

From atop the tallest building in Celadon City, toward the eastern part of the city, a burly man in a thick jacket was searching the skies with a set of binoculars. A light breeze tousled his dirty blond hair as he turned this way and that, ignoring the people staring at him curiously. His eyes stopped at a point far out on the horizon where a blue, sparkling pokemon was soaring in a circle over a group of snow-covered trees.

"I found you" he said to the bird with a malicious grin on his face. He lowered the binoculars, but kept his eyes on the spot as he pulled out his cell phone from the depths of his pocket and quickly dialed a number. There was silence as the line rung a few times, then a calm voice answered "Giovanni here."

"We found your pokemon, Boss" the man said. His eyes continued to trace the path of the creature to make sure it didn't go anywhere out of sight. "I can see it clear as day from the Department Store."

"Are you sure you have the right pokemon?" Giovanni said. He paused, probably to take a sip of whatever he decided to drink today, and then continued. "I don't want to send the rest of my men over there only to find out you're mistaken. I don't commend failure, and at this point Team Rocket can't afford it."

"Oh it's definitely Articuno. It's a huge blue bird with all that sparkly crap on it."

"Excellent, Team Rocket will be over there as soon as I can ship them out. I think I'll let Derrick take on this task. Things might get... interesting. I'm also sending my brother over there to make sure nothing gets in the way. I have a feeling we'll have... interference."

"Alright" the man said shortly, hanging up the phone without question. He put the binoculars to his eyes again to watch the bird's flight. It didn't seem to want to move from wherever it was circling.

"They're on their way?" asked a female voice from behind the man. She was dressed in black leggings and a short skirt with elbow-high gloves, and her coat was opened to reveal the Team Rocket R on her shirt - typical female Rocket attire. Her auburn hair was tied in a long ponytail that came down to her bottom.

"They should be here soon" said the man, finally turning away from the ledge. "Most likely they'll take the train."

"Good. I'm sick of this hunting game. It's too fucking cold. What does the Boss plan to do with the bird anyway?" The woman buttoned up her coat to keep out the biting cold that was quickly turning her mood bitter.

"I have no idea. I guess he'll end up using it like he does with every powerful pokemon he catches" the man responded. "It's going to be a long day. The Boss is sending his brother to oversee everything, and to help out if anything happens. He says he thinks there might be interference, so we have to be extra careful."

"Ugh" the woman scoffed, ignoring the shoppers on the roof who stared at her. Namely middle-aged men. "He can't send Vincent here. He's always trying to impress his dear old bro by taking the spotlight and trying to do all the work with his pompous, holier-than-thou attitude."

The man scratched his head thoughtfully. "Well, there isn't much we can do about him. If we have anything to say against him, we'll most likely have to take it to Giovanni. I'd rather not deal with any drama. What we need to focus on is getting this mission done and hopefully get a raise." He looked back out on the horizon to make sure the blue speck was still circling, and it was. It hadn't moved at all. "This will be easy" he added.

Back at the house, Iris was just finishing up a painting of the cute Totodile doll that sat unmoving on her desk, watching the world with a ghostly stare in its plastic eyes. The head leaned limply to one side and one would think it was growing tired from sitting in the same place for so long. Iris picked it up and set it on the bed next to the spot where Kane slept lightly. He opened an eye, seeing nothing but blue within his vision, and growled at the persistent intruder that insisted on trying to take his sleeping spot. The doll simply stayed where it was.

"I should show this to Mom" said Iris, looking over the painting with a look of proud satisfaction. "I think I saw her leave though... Where would she be going on Christmas?"

"Char..." said Kane sleepily.

"She's outside" came a voice from the doorway. Richard leaned on the doorway with a worn expression on his face. "She's decorating the grave out back. I'm wondering when she's going to give this up." He sighed. "I can understand the feeling of her loss, but she's letting it eat away at her every day and I don't think she realizes it. It worries me so much..."

"I can go out there and talk to her" said Iris. "Maybe I can get her to come take a walk with me or something. We both can go visit Edward and his family."

"That sounds like a great idea, just don't stay out too long." Richard turned to leave.

"Hey, uh, where did Delilah go?" asked Iris, getting up from her chair.

"You know, I'm not sure. Maybe she went outside with Rose."

Iris nodded and left the painting to dry on her desk, then slipped past Richard and went down the stairs. Her coat and boots were waiting where she had left them near the door, and she grabbed them quickly. She shivered as she opened the back door, realizing that it wasn't as warm as it looked outside. She was, at least, thankful that the snow was finally disappearing. As she turned the corner, following a set of footprints in the thin layer of snow around the house, she saw Rose and Delilah near Sage's grave. A few pokemon were wandering around nearby, probably belonging to the older woman.

"Umm, what's going on?" asked Iris, locking eyes with the woman who bore an eerie resemblance to herself.

"Your mother's just leaving a few things for Sage, and I came out here to talk to her" said Delilah quietly. In fact, everyone and everything seemed deathly silent. It was as though they were afraid to wake the body buried six feet beneath the soil. The Pidgeot that had been with Delilah the previous night was circling the skies happily, occasionally landing on a low tree branch to see what was going on at ground level. A Nidoqueen, probably also belonging to the woman Iris had only just met a day before, was wandering under the deck and sniffing everything curiously. Another pokemon was following her, but Iris couldn't tell what it was. She felt too awkward to ask, and instead pretended to take interest in the Christmas wreath that her mother had draped carefully over the grave.

"So, um..." Iris began. "I was thinking that maybe we could go visit Edward and his family today. I bet they'd love to see us." _And I bet Edward would love to see me,_ Iris added in her mind.

Rose stood up slowly and brushed the snow from her silk pajama pants, shivering slightly at having been outside in the cold with such a thin material to cover her body. She at least had her favorite fuzzy blue bathrobe on. "That sounds like a good idea" she said. "We can all take showers head on over there in time for lunch."

"So who is this Edward guy?" Delilah asked with a hint of skepticism in her voice. She could have just as well asked Iris if the two of them were dating, seeing as Delilah had looked pointedly at the girl with a raised eyebrow when she asked.

"His parents are pokemon breeders and go all over the world looking for rare and exotic pokemon" Iris said timidly. This was the first time she was speaking directly to Delilah, and she felt absolutely awkward about it. "He's a friend of ours." She made a sweeping gesture to imply both Richard and her mother. "And he visits once in a while. I guess you could say he's my best friend."

"I see" Delilah said simply.

"Alright, let's get inside" Rose said. Her voice always sounded so fatigued, more so today it seemed.

"Did you see that...?" Delilah asked suddenly as she looked toward the right side of the house. Iris tried to follow her line of vision with her own eyes, but could see nothing but the empty street lined with some houses.

"See what?" said Rose, turning to look in the same spot.

"... There was someone there. I could have sworn it was Team Rocket." Jade perked her ears up and moved toward Delilah, sensing her friend's distress.

"Again?" asked Iris. "Why are they still here?"

"They must be looking for something" said Rose. "I don't want to get involved with things like that again. Let's get inside before anything happens."

"I'm going to check it out" said Delilah, ignoring Rose's expression that was mingled with worry and shock. "You guys stay here." She returned Jade and called for Pidgeot to come over.

"No! You can't go!" said Rose, pulling on Delilah's arm as she tried to mount her bird. "You'll get killed for sure. They'll remember you."

"I'm only seeing what's going on. That guy I saw was on foot, and I'll be up in the air. I'll be fine Rose." The younger woman hesitated at the sound of her own name, which gave Delilah the chance to take off into the air and soar away without a second glance back.

"Alright Iris, let's get inside" said Rose. "Come on Amethyst." She picked up the pokemon in question, which had been digging herself a tunnel in the ground before being rudely interrupted. She squirmed as Rose carried her inside, with Iris following closely.

"What did you mean when you said that Team Rocket would remember Delilah?" asked Iris once she got inside. She struggled a bit with her boots to get them off.

"Delilah and I both had a run-in with Team Rocket some years ago" said Rose as she hung up her jacket. "That man in the trenchcoat that Richard fought was one of the men who we'd met before. They're not anything to take lightly, so I'm worried for her..."

"Who is she?" asked Iris.

Rose sighed, sitting down on the couch. "There's something you should know. I don't even know where to start though..."

Iris sat down next to her. "I'm here to listen" she said simply.

"Alright then…" Rose began. "Um. I've known Delilah since I was 16, which was when I had decided to leave my home town in Pallet. She was 22 at the time. "

"You were friends with someone six years older than you?" Iris asked curiously. "Wasn't that awkward?"  
"Well, no…" said Rose. "She looked very young for her age. When we first met, I thuoght she was 18." She chuckled, remembering the first day she ran into the woman with the snippy attitude and the mesmerizing green eyes. They both, ironically, had taken the first impression to heart and saw themselves as bitter rivals for quite some time.

"I guess you could say I'm thankful to have met her," Rose continued, "because I would have never gotten through anything that I ran into on my way to Saffron City. Professor Oak, you know him, he had asked me to run him an errand and deliver a package to Saffron City. That's how I was able to get out of Pallet Town, where I was abused for a while by my mother."

"Where was your dad?" Iris cut in.

"He left when I was ten because he couldn't stand my mother, but he left me to deal with her up until I was 16. Professor Oak gave me my own bike to use for travel and off I went on my own. I didn't care that I was running an errand. The freedom was more than enough."

"And where does Delilah come in?" Iris continued to urge the woman to keep going with the story, almost literally on the edge of her seat as she listened intently.

"I met her on the road, to put it simply" said Rose. "Little did I know that the package had something in it that Team Rocket was after. That caused a load of trouble for me and Delilah. We were constantly trying to fight off Team Rocket, and I guess it made us... closer." Rose hesitated at this part, staring at the floor as she tried to think of a way to word her next sentence. "I guess you could say that I was falling in love with her." She closed her eyes and sighed deeply, as if an enormous burden had just been lifted off of her shoulders.

"And...?" asked Iris, urging further. She didn't seem at all surprised to hear that her own mother was gay, and so Rose continued.

"Well... throughout this whole misadventure, I had a friend that meant more to me than anything in the world. That was Sage, my Totodile that I found when I was little. He evolved, and over time he became vicious and couldn't control his temper. No one could be near him, not even me... So eventually he had to be put down, and I had him buried outside..." Rose was surprised that she hadn't started crying at this point, but she hesitated as she spoke as if ready for the tears. Iris saw this and put a comforting hand on her arm.

"I don't want to be rude or anything," said Iris, "but what does that have to do with Delilah?"

"Well, it was my unwillingness to let go of the past, to let go of Sage, that caused Delilah and I to break up" said Rose with a sad smile - a meager attempt to lighten the mood. She was somewhat proud of herself to have admitted to all this, though she knew that the conversation would only get deeper and she would eventually have to confess _everything _to Iris. Unfortunately, Iris hadn't even known there was anything Rose had to confess in the first place, which would make trying to explain it even more difficult for the woman.

"Then you two actually did end up dating?" asked Iris, now intrigued by the bittersweet story.

Rose couldn't help but chuckle. She hesitated for a moment, and then said "We were married."

Iris' jaw literally dropped. "M-married?" she said, incredulous. Her eyes were wide, looking like they were about to pop out of her head. "Then that means... She's my mother too??"

Rose had expected to have to explain this part for some time, the story about Sage being the calm before the storm. Now she had to brace herself to make a confession she had been hiding for years - something no one but herself and Delilah knew about. "It's not only that Iris... Delilah is the one who gave birth to you." She said it quickly, as if it were something she would rather just ball up and throw in the garbage as soon as it left her mouth. There was a silence that had fallen, and Iris' expression was almost unreadable. It was as though her mind couldn't decide what she should be feeling right now. Finally, after having not spoken a word for two whole minutes, Iris spoke up.

"You said you two broke up" she said, her voice cracking slightly.

"We never divorced" said Rose quietly. She played with her hands nervously, feeling as though she had just dropped a bomb on her daughter's life. Her thoughts, as she waiting for another response from her daughter, drifted to Delilah. She could almost recite the words perfectly.

_"I love you Rose, I told you that. And I just proved it to you. Isn't that enough to show you that I'm staying for good?"_

"Well, yeah. I trust you with my life, and I love you too."

"Don't ever doubt what we have. Everything's over now, and we have each other. That's all that matters."

"... Will you marry me someday Delilah?"

Rose could remember the silence that followed, and how she literally held her breath for the answer. For months she had contemplated it, but had always been afraid of what Delilah would say. Was it possible to move too fast when you were so truly, madly, deeply in love?

_"Yes Rose. Someday."_

She laughed. Rose had actually started laughing at the response.

_"What's so funny?" _asked Delilah. But she wasn't offended, or hurt. She had an amused yet confused tone in her voice.__

"I've been waiting for so long to ask that. I'm laughing because of how stupid I was for being so damn nervous about it. I think at one point I had actually recited that in a mirror."

This time it had been Delilah's turn to laugh.

_"The worst I could have said was 'no'."_

"Since I was little, I always had hope for a happily ever after." Rose's voice had been nothing but a whisper. _"Saying 'no' would have been like saying 'I don't love you enough to be married to you'."_

"I told you that I'll be with you forever. Why wouldn't I want to marry you?"

It had been a rhetorical question, because at that point Delilah kissed her. She could remember it being the sweetest kiss she had ever experienced, even after having been with the woman for so long before then. The memory faded, mostly because at that point Rose had fallen asleep in Delilah's arms after they're lips had met for well over an hour._  
_  
"Why did you wait so long to tell me?" Iris finally asked. Rose hadn't even noticed the silence that had followed for over five minuted.

"I didn't think you'd understand" she said shamefully, tears filling her eyes.

"Does anyone else know?" Iris sounded like she was on the verge of screaming, and it took all her will power to force herself to calm down. Her hands shook as she ran them irritably through her hair.

"No one knew but me and Delilah" Rose said shortly.

Iris sighed, slouching in the couch lazily as if she had exerted all her energy on her simmering anger. She wasn't sure what to say next, but if anything she knew this much: One of her parents was out there getting involved with Team Rocket on her own, and Iris had to do something about it. Now was the chance to prove herself in the eyes of her fellow pokemon trainers, as well as in the eyes of the woman who had been there for her for as long as she could remember. This was the stepping stone she had been waiting for.

"I _have _to go help her" Iris said as she stood up quickly. "I'm going to make sure Delilah is okay."

"_No_" said Rose sternly. "You can't go out there and risk something like that. Team Rocket isn't just some band of thugs that screw around with the law. These people _will_ kill if they need to. They _will_ take people hostage. They've done so many horrible things to me and your mother, and others that were close to me. I know what it's like." The woman's voice cracked as she tried to urge her daughter not to go outside; it wasn't working.

She was gone before anyone could say another word to her, grabbing her pokeballs and calling Kane to her side. He was so much more awake now that he had the chance to go outside and use up the energy that had been boiling inside his body ever since he had evolved. His tail flickered as he waited for Iris to put her jacket on, both ready for any fight that might come their way. Outside was rather windy as Iris pulled the door open and stepped out into the cold. Kane led the way, picking up the very faint scent of Delilah and her Pidgeot. It seemed the bird had made many stops before her destination, because Kain had turned on many streets to get to where they needed to go. The zigzagging trail eventually led the two of them to the Department Store.

"Are you sure this is the right place?" Iris asked her pokemon skeptically. Without a word, Kane ran to the double doors, which opened automatically to let him in. Iris followed him, sprinting close behind him up the stairs until they made it to the roof. With burning lungs and a stitch in her side, Iris stopped just before the top to catch her breath. However, Kane had simply sprinted all the way up the stairs without even slowing. Behind one last set of double doors was Delilah, calling out commands to the ever-faithful Jade.

The pokemon was lost in a heated battle with her own male counterpart, the two rock-scaled bodies colliding as each tried to overpower the other. Both seemed just as formidable for this fight, almost like two enormous sumo wrestlers. Iris, seeing that this was going nowhere, called out a pokemon from one of the pokeballs on her belt. From it emerged her Azumarill, taking an immediate battle stance and waiting for its first order.

"You shouldn't be here kid" said Delilah with an extra pokeball wielded. "Team Rocket isn't something to mess with."

"Mom told me about you" said Iris, ordering Azumarill to blast the Nidoking with water gun. "I figured I _should _be helping you. We can talk later." The attack from the water mouse pokemon was enough to cause the defending pokemon to take a step back, which was the opening Delilah needed.

"Alright, now Headbutt him!" yelled Delilah with a satisfied smirk. The collision between Jade's head and the Nidoking's stomach sounded like two giant boulders smacking into one another. The force of the attack sent the Nidoking reeling backward until he was dangerously close to the edge of the building. The furious whipping pf his tail was the only thing maintaining his balance and keeping him from falling backward to his death.

"Okay Azumarill, Tackle!" shouted Iris. The pokemon took a leap forward, uncharacteristically graceful for such a bouncy, round pokemon, and knocked the enemy pokemon off the edge with a well-aimed shoulder tackle. The Nidoking's sheer weight pulled him down quickly; he fell for a good five stories before hitting the ground and cracking the pavement.

"I think you're outnumbered" said Delilah to the Rocket member. "I can do this all day."

The man grinned maliciously. "All I have to do is hold you off until the others get here."

"Others...?" Delilah asked. "What are you guys up to this time?"

"What makes you think I'll tell you?" The man crossed his arms, feeling as though he had already won this battle.

"Jade, grab him" said Delilah. Immediately, Jade snatched the man up by a fistful of his shirt. He kicked a bit, but was dead still once Delilah told her pokemon to hold him over the edge of the building - right over the spot where his pokemon had fallen to his death over 100 feet below.

"What's your name and what the hell are you doing here in Celadon?" Delilah asked with venom in her voice. The man didn't see this situation as so much of a joke now, and Iris subconsciously took a step back away from the angered woman.

"M-my name is John" the man whimpered as he felt his shirt tearing from the weight of his hanging body. "We're here for th-that rare pokemon..." He heard another few threads break. "Oh God...!"

"Jade, grab his arm instead" said Delilah. She sighed, her voice sounding almost as though she were bored. Iris felt like the odd one out as she stood in silence, watching the interrogation taking place. The man now hung there by his arm, his wrist held firmly by Jade's iron grip, and he groaned and struggled as he felt the joint slowly pulling out of its socket.

"What pokemon?" asked Delilah. "The bird?"

"Yes" said the man breathlessly. "The Boss wants it for himself, but I don't know why... Maybe to use as a weapon... There are about fourteen Team Rocket men coming here to try and catch it. It's somewhere over there..." He made a feeble attempt to point to the horizon where the blue speck continued to fly in circles. This shift in weight caused his arm to finally pull completely from the socket, resulting in a piercing cry.

"Alright, we're done with you then" said Delilah. "Not much else we can get outta you."

"You're not going to drop him, are you??" asked Iris, her eyes wide with shock.

"N-no, don't!" the man screamed. "Please don't!"

"I'm no killer" said Delilah, signaling for Jade to toss the man back onto the safety of the rooftop. He landed with a _thud_ and groaned, but chose not to move from that spot. "By the way, nice job kiddo" Delilah said with in a slightly amused tone. She reminded Iris of herself; the laidback but boisterous person with no worries in life. However, Iris could detect the hint of attitude in the woman - seemingly the only difference between the two.

"So what now?" asked Iris as she returned her Azumarill. Kane looked crestfallen, probably from having not been able to partake in the battle.

"You're going home right now" said Delilah, already with a hint of finality in her voice.

"You're going to be outnumbered" said Iris in protest. "And I know how to handle a battle. I already have my third badge-"

"It doesn't matter. You should be at home making sure your mother is okay."

"That's why Richard's there. Besides, you're my mother too." Iris almost considered, at this point, to cross her arms and pout like a little girl until she got her way.

Delilah sighed. "You're just as stubborn as she is."

"I could say the same for you" came a stern voice from the roof's double doors. In the doorway stood Rose, with Richard close to her side. Delilah could almost see the anger bubbling beneath the surface of Rose's skin, but she wasn't about to let this faze her.

"I told you I didn't want you to go" said Rose, crossing her arms. "It's too dangerous to get involved with Team Rocket."

"I think I can handle them just fine" said Delilah, dismissing the warning. She took the same defensive stance, with Iris standing in the middle looking back and forth between the two women. Richard stood behind Rose as if he were afraid a sudden catfight would break out.

"_Fourteen_ Team Rocket members Delilah!" Rose stressed on the word, reiterating the idea that the four of them were clearly outnumbered. "I heard this guy say that." She pointed to the helpless John, who still hadn't moved from his safe haven.

"We've gotten through it perfectly fine before, didn't we?" said Delilah, trying to steady her breath before she began raging.

"What about Sage??" asked Rose, her voice cracking. "Team Rocket's the reason everything went downhill for me. For _us_."

"So you blame them for _your_ unwillingness to let go?"

Iris spoke up, attempting to play the diplomat. "This shouldn't be about things from that many years ago" she began weakly. She wasn't sure how to word what she wanted to say, but she would do anything to get her parents to stop their shouting match. "We live here. We can't let Team Rocket mess around like this, especially when there are so many people at risk. Not just us. It'd be selfish to worry about our own safety, but not the safety of everyone else who lives here. If anything, we should get the authorities involved. We can turn in the one guy we have now, and tip them off about where the rest of them will be. It's all obvious."

There was silence as Rose and Delilah contemplated, but they avoided eye contact stubbornly. Richard stood at the sidelines, not taking anyone's side and not saying anything that would cause the situation to spontaneously blow up. Finally, with a sigh, Delilah threw up her hands in defeat and looked toward the man still laying on the ground. "I guess we should get this guy to the police station then" she said. "I'm not picking your ass up, so you'd better get up. Unless you want Jade to help you up. I'm sure you don't." The man groaned, but managed to slowly drag himself to a standing position, his injured arm hanging uselessly by his side, and follow the others back down the stairs of the Department Store.

"We should help the police out then" said Rose as she walked down the windy street. She hugged her jacket close to her to keep out the cold, but it wasn't enough to keep her teeth from chattering.

"So _now_ you want to get involved?" asked Delilah with a scoff. She didn't seem as fazed by the chill in the air, or rather the wind whipping through the air.

"I'm not going to talk about it" said Rose quietly. She seemed to be giving up on the shouting match.

"You never want to talk about it, that's your problem."

"We're almost there" said Iris, trying to cut into the approaching battle of insults again. "We really need to focus on this and nothing else." With a long, drawn-out sigh, she followed behind Jade, who followed as close as possible to the Rocket member named John. He looked back at the 7-foot pokemon nervously with every few steps, expecting her to grab him again and possibly use him as a Frisbee. They finally made it to the police station, and Delilah almost laughed when she heard John heave a sigh of relief. It was a quick ten minute sit-down with an officer, and a team of twelve made their way to where Team Rocket would be meeting. Delilah, Rose, Iris, and Richard all followed them to help.

"We should stay back unless they look like they need help" said Richard. "There's no use in playing the hero and getting ourselves hurt."

"Yeah. And we should get out our pokemon before we get there" said Iris as she took out all her pokeballs. She never broke stride as she released them one-by-one. "Come on guys," she said, "follow us." Among the team of pokemon were her Sandshrew, Drowzee, Azumarill, Porygon, Heracross, and of course Kain. The other two trainers released their pokemon, which brought the number of their army to 18, which did not even include the team of police. The long, paved path led them all to the very edge of Celadon City, where there were a few road markers posted on the sides of the road. One police officer took out a pair of binoculars and searched the skies for the rare pokemon that Team Rocket would be after. It wasn't anywhere to be seen, but the officer did notice a set of footprints - or rather very many sets of footprints - leading into the small forest nearby. The entire team of them waited not a minute longer as they quickly took off into the thick, towering trees. They reached an enormous clearing only moments afterward, where seemingly hundreds of Rocket members could be seen standing in a circle around an enraged bird. The Articuno shot beams of ice, trying to fight off its attackers, but in its confused rage it only managed to blast through a couple trees.

"Hey, look who decided to come!" exclaimed a muscular, tan man. A sea of heads turned to see who had decided to crash their party.

"Derrick, what a surprise..." said Delilah with a sigh. "I thought you were reduced to paperwork behind a desk for the rest of your 'career'?"

"It's funny you should mention that." The muscled man took a step forward. "I forgot to thank you for the demotion you caused me."

"How sweet" said Delilah sourly. "Then I should probably thank you for our last encounter." She pulled out a pokeball from her belt.

"Fine with me."

* * *

_(A/N): For those who are interested, my AIM screen name is EmoWitheredRose. I have a MySpace fansite for those of you who have a MySpace, so feel free to IM me about it. There are monthly updates in my blog, so you'll know exactly what I'm doing and at what level of laziness. Have I mentioned yet how much trouble I have with the document uploader on this site? I think I might shoot myself. But only after finishing this fanfic of course._


	11. Eye of the Tiger

"Stop wasting time!" a familiar man in a trenchcoat shouted from within the circle. "We're here to do business. Some of you go fight these guys off so we can finish." A handful of men immediately stepped forward and released their pokemon all at once. The police officers were the first to step in, some of which had managed to knock down and cuff a couple of Rockets before they had the chance to retaliate. Mostly the less muscular men went down fastest, and the ones that actually _could_ fight back were concentrating on weakening the Articuno; the battle was very one-sided for a while.

Derrick took a step away from the chaos and toward Iris, a pokeball in hand. Kain stepped in front of Iris protectively, growling and waving its flaming tail. "You're an easy target" Derrick said as he called out his pokemon. "Come on Raichu, this'll be quick." The eager pokemon burst out of its ball, its four-foot-long tail whipping behind it in anticipation and impatience.

"Let me take this battle" said Delilah, stepping in front of Iris. "You go help your mother."

"Isn't that sweet" said Derrick with what sounded like disgust. "I'd be honored to take you in battle. I've already taken you every other way I possibly could."

"Don't even start with that shit" spat Delilah. "Come on Jade." She sent her faithful pokemon from her ball, waiting for the first attack.

"Alright, Thunderbolt!" Derrick called out to his Raichu. It stood high up on its tail to give itself some leverage, then blasted a stream of lightning bolts from its cheeks. The electricity could be seen surrounding Jade's body and turning her into a gigantic lightbulb for a moment, but the aura just as quickly faded; it left her completely unscathed and rather confused at the useless attack. She tilted her in that familiar, curious manner.

"You are so fucking stupid" Delilah said bluntly.

"Shit. Ground-type... Alright then Raichu, Double Kick!"

"Get it with a Tail Whip, quick!" Delilah shouted almost as soon as she heard Derrick's voice. The resulting collision would have almost been humorous; Jade's tail met Raichu's comparitively small body and momentum played its part, sending the electric mouse flying like a homerun baseball. It landed somewhere in the trees after soaring for quite a few meters.

"Fuck" was Derrick's only response. Instead of rushing to his fallen pokemon's aid, however, he called out another pokemon. This time it was a particularly vicious-looking Houndour, crouched low to the ground as if it were to pounce at any moment.

"Good job Jade" Delilah said. "Time to get someone else out there now. Come on Pidgeot." The bird swooped down from the skies and landed, kicking up dust and snow drifts with her wide wings.

"Fire Blast!" Derrick called out immediately. Pidgeot easily dodged an oncoming flurry of red flames without even having to leave the ground. The attack continued soaring past until it hit a group of trees, setting them ablaze as soon as the fire touched them. A candle effect began, each tree lighting the one next to it until the clearing was surrounded by a barrier of six-foot-high flames.

"This can't be good" said Delilah, coughing from the drifts of smoke on the wind. "Pidgeot, Wing Attack!!" The bird soared up into the air, circled around, and hit the Houndour with outspread wings too fast for it to react properly. It was knocked backward into the wall of flames, yelping and running from them as soon as it could use its feet again. It reluctantly went back to its position on the battlefield, panting heavily and trembling from head to tail.

"Slash attack!!" Iris yelled from the sidelines. Kane came out of nowhere and went after the Houndour, slashing at its already injured body until it retaliated with a Bite attack right on his tail. Kane spun around, whipping its tail with enough force to throw the enemy pokemon into an unsuspecting Rocket member. The Houndour came back to the fight, stumbling from dizziness. Kane promptly knocked it out cold with a Tail Whip.

"Thanks kid" said Delilah. Iris nodded in response.

"How're you holding up Mom?" asked Iris.

"I could swear Amethyst was already trained" Rose responded. "She's not even tired out yet." The pokemon in question was locked in battle with a Meowth, the two of them circling each other like a pair of wild ready-to-brawl tigers. In the blink of an eye, the two ran toward each other, slashing and biting and trying to overpower the other. The Meowth rolled, pulling Amethyst with it, and pinned her down. It bit relentlessly at its neck until she finally pushed it off with her hind legs and ran after it.

"We've got three pokemon down between just the four of us" Delilah said.

"How are the police holding up?" asked Iris as she knelt beside her Drowzee's fallen body. It had passed out from fatigue in the middle of the fight and hadn't gotten back up. However, it panted heavily, meaning that it was at least still alive.

"The police arrested five of them" said Rose. "But we still have over twenty more."

"Jade, watch out!" Delilah shouted. Jade jumped in front of Rose just in time to block a rather large bat pokemon from attacking her with its fangs. The Golbat hit Jade's rock-hard chest and landed flat on its back. It hissed and flapped as it tried to get up, only to be trampled by a pokemon on its own team.

"Remind me to repay you for that one" said Rose with a sigh of relief. Delilah simply shrugged.  
The Rocket members who hadn't yet joined the fight had managed to bind the Articuno's wings with rope. They were now attempting to seize its legs, which were kicking and clawing at the ground furiously. Three of the men had been scathed by an Ice Beam attack and remained on the sidelines, groaning and writhing in pain as frostbite settled in their nearly frozen limbs. They were surrounded by a "layer" of Rockets, making the arrest of the ones who had fallen quite difficult. The police continued to fight and handcuff those who were helpless until all that was left were the twenty or so men trying to capture the giant bird. One of them, who seemed to be the oldest, stepped out from the circle.

"Enough with this interfering" he said in an icy cold voice. He bore a striking resemblance to the Team Rocket leader himself, and his uniform even looked the same. The Rocket R logo glistened on a well-polished metal pin against a burgundy suit jacket. He threw out two pokeballs without a word, stepping back to allow room for the upcoming fight. The first of the two pokemon emerged in a blinding flash of light, stretching its wings and taking a battle stance – a Dragonite. The second one came right after – a seven-foot-tall Feraligatr with bared fangs. The two of them stood up straight in an attempt to intimidate their adversary before attacking; it was working.

"Back up guys" said Delilah. She reluctantly sent out the only pokemon she had left out of the battle up until now – Scyther – and prepared to call out her first attack. A horrid screech from within the circle of Rockets turned all heads in that direction.

"We got it!" said one man triumphantly. The Articuno was now on its stomach, its legs bound by coils and coils of rope that looked like they were cutting off the circulation of its feet. Its feathers were stained crimson from the non-lethal bullets that had constantly pelted it, and some of the soft feathers had fallen out and were scatted all over the ground.

"Now let's take care of these guys" said another man. The entire crowd of them turned to face the battlefield and took out a handful of pokeballs each.

"No" said the man who looked like Giovanni. "This is _my_ fight. You guys, call up the Boss and have him send in a helicopter. I'll handle these fools."

"You can't do that Vincent, you're outnumbered!" Derrick argued.

"The Boss, my _brother_, isn't here, and I'm second-in-command. Do not question me." After a moment's hesitation, Derrick pulled out a cellphone and dialed a quick number. Attention turned back to Iris and the others as the second-in-command called out an attack.

"Take to the skies Cairo!" he said to the Dragonite. "And use Dragonbreath!" The dragon soared up as high as it could, circling for a bit as it aimed its attack. A beam of purply-blue fire shot straight downward and ripped through the ground. Rose and Iris, who were closest to the attack, leapt backward immediately. The blast left a small, smoking crater in the soil as if a bomb had gone off in that spot. "Again!" shouted the man in a hysterical tone. Iris almost expected the high-pitched evil villain cackle to follow. This time, Delilah ordered Scyther to fly up to the enemy and try to knock it out of the skies, but it seemed that 120 pounds versus 460 pounds was not a fair fight. Scyther was batted away like a pesky fly with Cairo's tree trunk of a tail. Cairo finished unleashing its attack as if nothing had happened, but Scyther was able to kick herself off the ground and fly back up. She swooped underneath the dragon's belly and behind it to escape more blasts of purple flames, landing on its back.

"Swipe at it Scyther!" shouted Delilah at the top of her lungs. "Get it down on the ground!" The pokemon obeyed and slashed at its back, and it seemed to be working until Cairo went into a roll. It swooped close to the ground, swung back up, and backflipped. The Scyther fell to the ground - landing on its feet, however - then took off again at blinding speed to try and hunt down the attacker.

"This is getting nowhere" said Delilah. "And Scyther is gonna end up fighting on her own anyway. She never listens."

"Why isn't he using the Feraligatr?" Rose asked. She eyed the drooling, snarling beast warily.

"He's probably too full of himself to think that he can't get the job done with just one pokemon."

"Hit it with a Tail Whip!" Cairo's master ordered. The pokemon spun in midair and struck Scyther with a concussion-inducing blow, sending her flying through the wall of flames and into a tree; she didn't come back.

"Shit" said Delilah. "I can't even get over there." Delilah watched the spot where the Scyther had landed, but there was no sign of her. "Alright Alakazam, you're up next" said Delilah. Alakazam, who had been standing off to the side to meditate for another fight, teleported to the battlefield.

"Cairo isn't the least bit worn out" the man named Vincent stated proudly. "I'll make this quick, I promise. Let's go Apollo, time to fight." The Feraligatr got on all fours, and a rumbling growl sounded from deep within its throat. Rose backed away at the almost-too-familiar sound.

"I still have most of my pokemon left" Iris said. "I'll help. Let's go Heracross." The large bug lumbered forward, its powerful horn aimed and ready to strike. It flexed its membraneous wings as it waited. "Alright, let's finish this finally." As Iris said those words, numerous heads lifted as they heard the chopping of helicopter blades overhead.

"It's about time" Vincent said with a grin. He looked up at the approaching helicopter, probably carrying his brother in the front seat. The copter hovered over the spot where the Articuno lay helpless, and five thick, long cables dropped down to the ground. A tarp was also dropped down, which was promptly hooked up to the cables after they had rolled the almost unconcious pokemon onto it. Giovanni's tiger eyes watched from above, a hint of a smirk around his lips. If he had been grinning, Iris wouldn't have been surprised to see a pair of sharp white fangs.

"Grab that one with your jaws Apollo!" Vincent yelled. Iris was so distracted by the helicopter that was taking the Articuno away that the Feraligatr's attack had almost become deadly. The Heracross, which had been Apollo's target, jabbed the enemy straight down its throat with its enormous horn. Apollo gagged and stumbled backward to get away, only to be attacked once more.

"Use Megahorn now!" said Iris, trying not to become distracted by the battle that had broken out between one of Richard's rare, exotic pokemon and Cairo. The Heracross finished with a violent jab of its horn, knocking the wind out of Apollo and leaving it gasping for air as it laid on the ground.

"This isn't over yet!" Vincent screamed angrily. "Get up Apollo!" The pokemon groaned, lifting its enormous body off the ground slowly and shaking its head as a response to the dizziness that clouded its senses. It took an uneasy step back, then regained its balance and stood up tall on two legs. The man smirked the same way as his brother does.

"I'm running out of pokemon" Iris said to Delilah quietly. "This thing is like a tank."

"I still have Alakazam" responded Deliah. "We still have a chance if we tagteam it. Richard, why don't you try to take down the Dragonite?" The man nodded in response, sending out a pokemon and preparing for battle. Delilah called Alakazam to her side, and Iris called Heracross to hers.

"Hydro Pump!" yelled Vincent. The blast of water was enough to hit both defending pokemon, but the two of them got out of the way just in time. Heracross took to the skies while Alakazam teleported away.

"Use Take Down attack!" Iris called to the bug pokemon. It landed a bit clumsily on the ground, then sent a full-body tackle into Apollo's side. It stumbled, but the attack wasn't enough to even knock it down. It retaliated with Slash attack, leaving Heracross almost in shreds. Its wings fluttered as it tried to take flight and get away, but all it managed to do was kick up some dust around it as it laid helpless on the ground. Iris ran to its side.

"It's alright, you did good" Iris said in a comforting voice. She returned the pokemon to its ball and prepared to send out her final pokemon. Before she could, however, Delilah got the upperhand.

"Hit it with Solarbeam!" she said to Alakazam. From the purple star on its forehead came a stream of solar energy that hit Apollo spot-on, weakening it enough to make it stop moving. It was like electric shock, the waves of energy giving the enemy's body a golden glow much like what the Thundershock attack did to Jade previously. This time, however, the attack was at least ten times as effective, leaving small bits of "static" sparking from Apollo's body.

"Good one" said Rose admiringly. The fallen Amethyst was still laying limp in her arms, one eye opened to watch the fight taking place. Once in a while she'd whimper in pain and wriggle around, but Rose's soothing voice was enough to keep her calm.

"One more Alakazam, you're doing good" said Delilah. "Now get it with Hypnosis." The pokemon closed its eyes and sent pulsing, visible airwaves to the weakened Apollo, who promptly fell asleep. Its huge head went limp and hit the ground with a _thud_. Delilah smiled with satisfaction.

"You still have one more to go" said Vincent, returning his pokemon. "Cairo isn't the least bit weakened. Why don't you just give it up? The Articuno is already gone."

"We're not going to give you that satisfaction" said Richard. He was concentrated on his Blaziken, which was currently tussling with Cairo on ground-level. It seemed the fighting-type could dodge the oncoming attacks fairly well, but when it came to offense it was as though the dragon were made of concrete.

The remaining Rocket members stood in a semi-circle to watch the fight, cheering and booing as if it were a sports game. The battling pokemon were the only things keeping the police from getting to them. The Blaziken hit with mostly Ice Punch attacks, but even the dragon's elemental weakness couldn't take it down. A Headbutt to the stomach and a Thunderbolt attack left Blaziken in a heap of shed feathers and blood on the ground. Silence fell.

"Come on Blaze, you can do it" said Richard. "Get up..." The bird laid there for a moment, trying to catch its breath, then slowly but surely it managed to get back on its feet. The crowd of Team Rocket members were in an uproar once more, dispite the loathful looks they were getting from Vincent.

"High-Jump Kick!" Richard called out with new confidence. Blaziken displayed its Tae Kwon Do skills well as it jumped up nearly six feet off the ground, swiveled around, and kicked Cairo in the side of its head with its outstretched leg. Cairo was knocked to the ground.

"Come on Cairo!!" Vincent screamed. "Get up!" The dragon lifted its upper body off the ground with shaking arms, but couldn't seem to get into a standing position. It fell to the ground weakly after trying twice to stand up, then finally shut its eyes and stopped moving.

"He's out cold and you're out of luck" said Delilah. "Now that you're out of the way, we can finish off your friends."

"No" said Vincent shortly. Some Rocket members who had stepped forward stopped in their tracks, holding a pokeball each. Vincent signaled for them to stand down. "I will not waste my time on you fools when we've already gotten what we wanted. Let's go." Before anyone could stop them, each of the Rockets released a winged pokemon, mounted them, and took off. Vincent was last seen on the back of a Charizard, looking down at Iris and the others with those tiger eyes.


	12. Seek and Destroy, p1

"This is what we've been waiting for" echoed a voice from the doorway. Two enormous double doors led into an even more colossal room at least three stories high. A spiral stairwell wrapped itself around the room, leading from the doorway to a balcony high above. At the center of the spacious and bright room was the captured Articuno, trapped in a machine of sorts. Tubes and wires snaked around the bird, some tucked under its feathers and stuck into its flesh via sharp needles. The wires and tubes led back to the machine's mainframe, where blinking lights and beeping noises displayed the status of the machinery. The bird's feet were chained together and to the floor to keep it from getting away. A man stepped forward from the doorway and into a shaft of light cascading down from a high window, his neatly polished shoes echoing on the metallic floor beneath him. The light shining down on his almost glinted off his neatly-combed grey hair. He stopped in front of the bird, which had long ago given up trying to escape from its confines.

"Very nice" said the man with a grin. "I must commend you all for bringing me this."

"Thank you Boss" responded one of the men keeping an eye on the machine. He was even taller than Giovanni and had the same thin frame. His hair was brown and somewhat messy, but he had a deep voice that held the droning, no-bullshit tone that would belong to a soldier. His pale blue eyes were locked on his work, which included reading a computer screen of scrolling text.

"This is the steppingstone we've needed" Giovanni continued. "From here we can work on building up our army. With one legendary, we'll control even more." He had a toothy grin on his face that defined the wrinkles around his eyes and mouth. "My brother will be taking over for me soon, and Team Rocket will be invincible."

"Your brother?" asked a man coming down the snaking set of stairs. He was as tall as the soldier-man, but had about ten times as much muscle.

"Yes, Vincent will be taking over for me when I am retired" said Giovanni. "I've been in this business for forty years. Team Rocket needs a young leader to introduce new ideas and new goals."

"Where will you go?" the burly man asked.

"I own a private island in the south. I'll be living there for a while away from any police that might try and come after me. I won't be keeping in contact with anyone, especially Team Rocket. They'll track me."

"The bird's been sedated" said the man at the machine. "When it wakes up, it'll be under our control. The machine is pumping serotonin into its blood, which will help calm it down when it wakes up. It won't even struggle."

Heads turned as another Team Rocket member came rushing into the room, her long ponytail trailing behind her like a streamer. Her knee-high boots clanked on the metal floor as she ran up to Giovanni. She stopped short and took a moment to catch her breath.

"There's an intruder out there" she said. "I think there might be more of them. It's an attack."

"Who would be attacking Team Rocket?" said the burly man. "Do you think it might be that kid and her parents from a couple weeks ago?"

"I don't recognize this guy" the woman continued. "Some punk looking kid with baggy clothes and really short hair."

"Send some of our men out there to get him" said Giovanni. "Split the team in half and have one group scout the area."  
"Yes sir."

Within a matter of minutes, there was a swarm of Team Rocket members outside the enormous cylindrical building. They waited for orders as they stood in formation, then set out in two different groups to weed out the intruders. Behind a smaller building made of brick, a man and his pokemon Marowak were hiding in the shadows. The man watched as the Rocket members set off in all the wrong directions to find him.

"We'll wait until one gets close" he whispered to his companion, who nodded in response.

"We found someone!" one of the men yelled from behind the huge tower. A woman with dark skin and hair came running out from the far side of the building, her Noctowl swooping in from the skies. It landed on her arm as she spun around to face two of the Rockets that had tailed her.

"Alright Noctowl" she said. "Peck attack!" The bird flew up into the air and came swooping back down to attack the men with its sharp beak. They swatted at it and ran, but the Noctowl continued pursuing them until another avian pokemon came after it. Someone had called out their Pidgeotto to bring down the Noctowl, who flew up high and circled around to get away from its attacker. "Sky Attack!" yelled the girl from ground-level.

"Looks like Katrina's doing okay" said the man from behind the distance. His brown eyes watched the battle for a moment, then searched the area around him to make sure no one had found him. "Fucking cold out here." He zipped his leather jacket up as far as it would go, then lit up a cigarette as he waited.

"Maro-maro!" said the Marowak as it pointed to something in the distance. One of the men had spotted them and was heading toward them with a pokeball in hand.

"Here we go then" said the man, stepping away from the brick wall of the building and walking forward.

"What are you doing here?" asked the Rocket as he approached; it was the man in the trenchcoat.

"You mean me personally, or all six of us?"

"Don't get sarcastic with me! I- W-wait, six of you?!"

The other man crossed his arms and scoffed. "Yeah. We've been sent here to get that pokemon you captured."

"Who are you??" the trenchcoat man asked.

"If you want a formal introduction, then my name's Christopher. I'm part of a team of freedom fighters stationed here to get rid of Team Rocket."

"I don't see that happening anytime soon" said the man, throwing out his pokeball. "Let's go Typhlosion!" In a flash of light and flames came the pokemon, its bristly fur standing on end.

"Come on Marowak, this'll be easy" said Christopher, taking a drag from his cigarette. The Marowak stepped forward, twirling the staff-like bone in its hand as it prepared for battle. "Headbutt!" The pokemon ran forward head-first, but the attack was swiftly dodged by the enemy.

"Quick Attack!" The Typhlosion shoulder-tackled the Marowak in a flash of fire, but it quickly recovered.  
"Bone Club attack" said Christopher. The Marowak wielded its staff like a sword and brought it down on the Typhlosion's head. It reeled backward and stumbled. "Now get it with Iron Tail!" The pokemon's tail began glowing silver; it spun around and whacked the Typhlosion with its tail, sending it flying backward. It hit the ground hard and didn't get back up. The man in the trenchcoat reluctantly returned the pokemon to its pokeball.

"I think you need to leave, or you'll be next" said Christopher. Marowak brandished its bone threateningly.

"It's only a matter of time before the others find you" said the man. "All I have to do is alert the others."

"You do that" came a voice from the other side of the building. Another woman with jet-black hair came from around the corner and stood beside Christopher. "In the meantime, we'll find a way inside." The trenchcoat man glared at them, then ran off to alert the others.

"Good to see you got here safely Ivory" said Christopher. "How long do you suppose we have?"

"Probably five minutes at the most" responded Ivory. "We need to get in there fast. I see a door over there that doesn't seem to be too heavily guarded. Try to keep the others distracted while I go take care of clearing the door. Katrina's fighting, but you might end up running into Ben and the other two."

Christopher nodded, then made his way away from the building to lead any Rocket members he bumped into away from where Ivory was. She had her Blastoise named Sapphire with her, which would provide her with more than enough protection from any guards around the door. Christopher made it only a few yards before he was intercepted by two burly Team Rocket members. One of them was Derrick, with his Nidorino at his side.

"You're not going anywhere" he said in his overly confident voice. "Tackle him Nidorino!" Without a moment's hesitation, the horned pokemon ran straight into Christopher, knocking him to the ground and leaving him gasping for breath. Marowak stepped forward and retaliated with Flamethrower, which managed to scathe both the Nidorino and Derrick. The man jumped back and yelped, while the Nidorino attempted to attack Marowak with Double Kick; it missed both times as Marowak dodged it effortlessly.

Christopher managed to drag himself off the ground, sighing as he saw that his cigarette had fallen out of his mouth. "So you're gonna play dirty, huh?" he said, brushing himself off. "Earthquake!" Marowak backed up toward Christopher to allow itself some room, then jumped into the air and stomped on the ground as hard as it could. The impact sent a tremor beneath the enemy's feet, immediately knocking them to the ground.

"Thundershock!" came a voice from behind Christopher. He turned in time to see a Pikachu run into the fray and send a bolt of lightning at the Nidorino and the two men. They were both shocked and stunned, leaving them on the ground in a twitching heap.

"Thanks Meghan" said Christopher.

"No problem" said Meghan, her Pikachu returning to her side. "Where's your sister?"

"She's working on getting into the building. There's a door over there that she found." Christopher pointed off into the distance at the spot hidden in shadow. "Where are the others?"

"Ben disappeared" responded Meghan. "But I think I saw Dan trying to get into the building with his Charizard. As if he couldn't be any less conspicuous."

"He knows what he's doing" said Christopher, looking at the tower. "We need to clear out the rest of these guys and then get to the door Ivory found."

"I can go with Katrina and you can go with your sister" said Meghan. "I'll be fine out here."

"Alright, you'd better be." He turned and ran back to where Ivory was, Marowak following closely. It was quiet on this end of the building, which must have meant that Team Rocket was no longer scouting this area. He saw that the door over here had been kicked in, so he snuck over to it and peered inside. It looked like some kind of storage room, with piles of boxes and shelves full of miscellaneous objects. Christopher slipped inside and looked around. It was dark, but he managed to find his way around everything until he made it to a set of stairs. Someone from behind his grabbed his arm, so he whirled around only to come face-to-face with Ivory.

"Where are the others?" she asked. Sapphire was standing close behind her, looking around curiously.

"The girls are fighting Team Rocket" said Christopher. "Ben isn't anywhere to be found, and Dan is trying to get in through a window."

"I hope they don't mess this up. They tend to dive headfirst into everything."

"I think they'll be fine, come on." Christopher led the way up the stairs until they reached a metal door. Strangely, it was unlocked; Christopher pushed it open and went through. They found themselves in the enormous central room where the machine was hooked up to the helpless Articuno. The man keeping an eye on the machine turned toward them, immediately drawing a gun.

"Crap" said Christopher. He stopped in his tracks. Before the man could say a word, an enormous orange pokemon dropped down from the ceiling and landed on him, breaking his back and causing him to scream. It was Charizard, who belonged to Dan. Its owner came running down the stairs and stopped in front of the group.

"It took a little longer than I thought," said Dan, "but I'm here."

"No one told you to try to break in" said Christopher. "You could have gotten hurt. But thanks all the same. Where's Ben?"

"Up there somewhere" Dan responded, pointing up at the balcony high above their heads.

"Why??" yelled Christopher. "We can't afford to lose track of people!"

"Just let it go Chris" said Ivory. "We got in. We still need to stick to _our _mission. Ben knows what he's doing. Let's get the Articuno out of here."

The three of them went over to the machine, walking around it to see how they could free the bird without harming it. Dan found a red breaker switch that said "OFF"; he immediately pulled it. Every light in the building went out, leaving them in almost complete darkness. The only light was the sunlight pouring in from the few windows and the bright flame on Charizard's tail.

"Nice going" said Christopher impatiently.

"I turned the machine off, didn't I?" Dan said with a smirk.

"Come on and help us" said Ivory, kneeling down to detach the wires from the bird's flesh. Christopher and Dan joined in to help until the Articuno was free. However, it was still in a deep sleep.  
"How do we get it out of here?" asked Dan.

"First of all, we need to get the power back on" said Christopher. "There has to be a control room somewhere. We can't split up to look for it, because Charizard's the only source of light. We'll stay together and look around. Let's return our pokemon while we're at it, so we don't have to keep track of so many people."

Christopher and Ivory returned their pokemon to their balls, then walked to the door nearest to them. It was unlocked, so they went inside and looked around. There was an enormous rectangular table in the center of the room, probably for meetings. At the far end of the table was a fancy-looking chair, and on the side of it was another door. They moved quietly through the room until they got to the door, then went in. This door was also unlocked. The room on the other side was very small and had a desk at its center. Behind the desk was rows of filing cabinets.

"Maybe we'll find something useful" said Christopher. He went to one of the cabinets and tried to open it; it was locked.

"We don't have time for that" said Ivory.

"I just want to see what these guys are up to. I bet there are all kinds of plans in here."

"Charizard can probably melt the lock" said Dan. "Go ahead Charizard. Try it out." The pokemon stepped foward and blew a small flame at the metal, which glowed bright orange. Charizard melted the metal all around the lock until it fell off, then Christopher opened the top drawer. He chose the first folder in the row and opened it up.

"Hmm. This is all the background info on Giovanni's brother. I heard he's supposed to be taking over as the new leader. We could use this."

"We should hurry Chris" said Ivory worriedly. "Grab some files and stick them in Dan's bag. We can't stay here reading them."

Christopher grabbed a handful of files, looked back at the filing cabinet hesitantly, then shoved the files into the bag slung over Dan's back. Then they all headed back out into the main room to find another door. The only other door on the ground floor was locked, so they had no choice but to go up the stairs. On the second tier of the tower were many more doors, the first one labeled "Lounge". They took a peek inside but found nothing but a few couches and tables, and a fancy high-backed armchair at the back of the room near an enormous window. They didn't stop to look out the window, but instead kept moving to the next door. This one was labeled "Laboratory", but was also locked.

"With all this equipment you would think they'd have electronically-lockable doors" said Christopher as he pulled on the door handle.

"But if they did, then too many people could have access" Ivory said.

"Well yeah, obviously." Christopher scoffed. "Well, we melted the cabinet lock earlier. Do you think we could try for this door?"

"Sure" said Dan. He motioned for Charizard to approach the door; it blew a long stream of flame and worked its way around the handle until it fell off. Dan pushed the door open and led the way inside. This room was filled with rows of shelves that held cages; some of them were empty and some of them had pokemon in them. Most of the pokemon cried out and pawed at the latches on the doors, trying to break free. At the back of the room were cages big enough for elephants, in which there were some larger pokemon like Rhydon or Arcanine. These pokemon had shackles and muzzles on them to keep them from escaping. At one corner of the room was a cage containing a Charizard with black scales and red wings. The flame on its tail was dim, and it simply sat in the corner of the cage and watched the intruders with emotionless eyes.

"This guy looks so sad" said Ivory, approching the cage and looking at the pokemon; it didn't move an inch.

"We won't be able to get any of these pokemon out of here" said Christopher sadly. "We're on an island. Half of them can't swim or fly. Even so, we'll attract too much attention."

"There's nothing in here but pokemon" said Dan, coming back from somewhere around the corner. "We should get going."

They headed back out and continued their search, mostly just peeking into the rooms to see if they had the right one. They eventually moved to the next tier, then the next, but without any luck. When they made it to the uppermost balcony, they stopped to take a rest on the stairs. Charizard and Dan simply looked over the balcony curiously, seeing nothing but black, while Ivory and Christopher sat on the top step.

"I think I see someone over there" said Dan, pointing into the darkness at the other end of the balcony.

"How do you know?" asked Christopher, standing up and looking in the same spot.

"Look under the window, you can see the outline of something moving."

"Stop trying to creep us out" scolded Ivory. "Because it's working..."

"He's right" said Christopher, watching a silhouetted figure move across the balcony; it was headed right for them.

"Come on Charizard, we can't let it get over here" said Dan, letting the pokemon lead them toward the stranger. When they got close enough, Charizard lunged out and grabbed the figure by its arm and held on tight.

"Woah, hey, it's just me!" it yelled.

"Ben??" said Dan incredulously.

"Yes!" the voice responded. "And your Charizard has one hell of a grip."

"Alright, drop him" said Dan, laughing as he heard Ben's body _clunk _against the metal floor. He stood up and straightened himself out, his tight white T-shirt showing off an odd amount of muscle for such a skinny guy. His long, wavy black hair was tied back in a ponytail that hung a little past his shoulders.

"Where the hell did you disappear to?!" Christopher asked. "You were supposed to be with the others outside. They're outnumbered enough as it is!"

"Alright, hey, calm down" said Ben. "I thought I'd try and get inside. I didn't think Dan would be trying too. I got in through a window and was scoping out the area until the power went out. I couldn't see anything, so I just stayed up here."

"You must have seen Charizard's flame" said Ivory. "You could have called to us."

"Yeah, but I didn't know if there were any more Rocket members around to hear."

"Well, next time you decide to go on one of your little secret agent missions, at least let us know!" yelled Christopher.

"Alright, calm down Chris" Ivory said gently. "We still need to find that control room."

"I found it" said Ben, pointing to the place he had just come from. "It's locked though."

"We'll melt through that one too then" said Christopher, leading the way around the balcony to its end where there was a door labeled "CONTROL ROOM". Charizard once again assisted in melting the lock off, then the five of them slipped inside. They found themselves at the center of a room big enough to be an opera house, which had a computer screen in the back almost as long as the wall it was mounted on and an equally large control panel underneath it. Christopher ran to the equipment and looked around for anything that resembeled a power-on switch.

"If you want the power back on, it would be a breaker switch" said Ben, looking at the metallic fuse boxes on the west wall. There were nearly twenty of them to choose from, one of which was labeled "Main Lobby". Ben pulled the switch on this one, hearing the distant whir of machinery starting up; this must have booted up the machine that the Articuno was attached to. He looked around for one more, finding the one labeled "Control Room". He pulled this one as well and they all squinted against the lights that had just come back on. The giant computer jumped to life, the screen flickering on and displaying a request for password entry. The control panel was blinking and beeping with many different lights.

"Why did you do that?" asked Christopher.

"I wanted to check out the computer" said Ben, walking to the control panel and inspecting all the different buttons and switches.

"Are you serious? We have to get downstairs!"

"Then do that. I'll be right here."

"Come on Chris, let him have his fun" said Ivory, gently pulling Christopher away from the computer and out the door. Dan followed, and then Charizard, and they made their way all the way back down the stairs until they were on the first floor again. The Articuno had been woken up, but seemed to be too drowsy to get up off the floor.

"Now how are we going to manage this?" asked Dan, watching the bird thoughtfully.

"One of us should go see what Katrina and Meghan have managed" said Christopher. He pulled out another cigarette and lit it up, taking a long drag and blowing out a stream of smoke. "Ivory, how 'bout you go out there and check it out? Just slip out the way we came in while Dan and I stay here."

Ivory nodded as she walked past them, disappearing behind the door to the storage room and making her way back outside. It was quiet, which was far too unsettling for her. She released Sapphire and motioned for him to follow her around the building to where the other two girls were previously fighting off Team Rocket. No one was over here either. After walking a little further around the building, however, Ivory finally ran into Meghan.

"What happened out here?" asked Ivory, looking around nervously.

"One of them called for a helicopter, and then they just left" said Meghan, tying back her curly red hair. "I think there's a helicopter pad at the top of the building. They're such cowards."

"That's not good" said Ivory, looking up at the top of the building. "That means they're going to get inside and find the others. Where's Katrina?"

"Right here" came the voice from behind Meghan. Katrina, slightly breathless, came bounding up to her and stopped at her side.

"Alright, good, let's go." Ivory led the way as quickly as possible, running back to the storage room door and up the stairs. They ended up back in the main lobby where Christopher and Dan were standing.

"Team Rocket's in here!" said Ivory, stopping to catch her breath. "We think they might have gotten in through the roof. Ben is up there!"

"Come on everyone!" said Christopher, sprinting toward the stairs and up them. The others followed as close as they could until they made it back to the top. They were too late; the control room door was opened and swarms of Team Rocket members were around and in it.

Among them was Vincent, glaring back at them from across the balcony with a scowl.


	13. Heaven

It had only taken about ten minutes for the firefighters to get to the scene and put out the enormous blaze that was quickly spreading. Scyther, who had been thrown into the blazing inferno, was nowhere to be found, and Delilah had no choice but to give up the search and go home with the others. Derrick's Raichu, however, had been found pretty far away; it was barely alive, with most of its fur missing from being trapped in the fire. It was brought to the Pokemon Center, only to die on the way there. Iris, Rose, Delilah, and Richard all went to the Pokemon Center as well to heal their pokemon, but there were no casualties other than the Scyther. Afterward, they went straight home and were reluctant to go outside until Team Rocket had finally left Celadon City.

About a week went by and in that time, Team Rocket had stopped being mentioned on the news. There was no sign of Giovanni or his brother Vincent, nor of any member of Team Rocket. The Articuno hadn't returned, which either meant that it had escaped and went home or Team Rocket managed to keep it from escaping. Nonetheless, Iris would sit by her bedroom window and look up into the sky as if the bird were to appear at any moment. It seemed everyone was doing this once the whole city found out what had happened, and it brought on a feeling of unease that enveloped the city.

Iris had found the time to walk to Edward's house, where they shared their stories of what had happened over the last few days. It was evident that Iris had a lot more to tell, and Edward listened to the story intently, occasionally raising his eyebrows in surprise. Everyone who had helped out the police that day were mentioned on the news and the Chief of Police himself thanked them sincerely for helping with the arrest of eight of the Team Rocket members that had been involved in the incident. Iris, however, felt like the entire event had been a failure; Giovanni got what he wanted and his brother had not been arrested, and eight Team Rocket members seemed like nothing compared to the 30 or so men that had been helping Giovanni.

"That was still very brave of you to step in like that" said Edward as the two of them sat down to a cup of hot cocoa and oatmeal. They had made themselves comfortable in the living room of Edward's house where they sat on expensive-looking black leather sofas. His parents had gone out shopping and left the two of them there to tell stories while Edward's Larvitar named Rocky and Kane chased each other playfully around the house.

"I had help" Iris said dismissively. "It was mostly Delilah who did the work. She's a much better trainer. She fought at the Pokemon League one time."

"Wow" said Edward, taking a sip of cocoa. He set it down on the glass coffee table nearby and sprawled out lazily on the sofa. "It's a lot of work to get there I hear. Did she win?"

"She was disqualified from what I heard on the news" Iris responded. "She doesn't talk about it much though."

"Is she a friend of your mom's? I've never seen her before. Your mom doesn't usually have anyone over but my family and Richard."

"Um, yeah, a friend." Iris took a nervous gulp of her hot cocoa, not wanting to say too much about what she'd recently found out about Delilah and her mother.

"So when are you heading back out on the road?" Edward asked as he picked up his bowl of oatmeal. He prodded at it with his spoon before finally tasting it.

"Y'know, I'm not sure" said Iris, leaning her head back comfortably on the back of the sofa. "I just got my third badge from Vermillion City gym. That's not too far from here." Suddenly, she sat straight up as if she had just forgotten something.

"What?" asked Edward with oatmeal in his mouth.

"Wow, I'm so stupid. I didn't even realize... My next badge is _here_. The Rainbow Badge."

Edward took a moment to consider this. "Are you sure you're ready?"

"I don't know really" Iris admitted with a sigh. "I figured my next badge was a couple of towns away, so I haven't been training that much. I should start doing that soon. I've been here too long as it is."

Edward gave her a hurt look. "So you don't think it's worth it to stay here just a little extra?"

"Oh, no, I didn't mean that" said Iris. "I just don't like to stay in one spot for very long. It's... hard to explain. I guess I'm just excited to reach my goal as a pokemon trainer."

"And what will you do once you get there?" asked Edward.

"... I never thought of that."

They sat in silence, finishing up the last of their oatmeal and cocoa. Kane had eventually grown tired from running around and decided to crash on the love seat across from Edward and Iris and take a nap. Rocky came back, still brimming with energy, only to find that its playmate was sleeping. It jumped up on the sofa between Iris and Edward and watched them curiously.

"She never seems to be able to sit still" said Edward as he placed his empty bowl back onto the coffee table.

"She?" asked Iris. "Oh, you mean Rocky? Wow, I didn't even know it was a girl."

"I've had her since I was little, and everyone thought she was male, so I named her Rocky. It was only until I noticed she only found interest in male pokemon in her own breeding group that I realized she was female."

"Cool" Iris responded shortly. "When are your parents coming home?"

"Uhh" Edward said, turning to look at the clock behind his head. "Wow. Not for another couple of hours."

"What are they doing?" Iris turned to lay against the arm of the sofa, stretching comfortably.

"They're good friends with the old lady at the Pokemon Breeding Center in Goldenrod City. They take the train there and meet up with the lady. Usually it's to share stories about where we've traveled to and what kinds of rare pokemon we've found before. Or they ask to use the breeding fields for a while for our own pokemon. We have our own ranch out in Olivine City, which is as far from Kanto as you can get. Right on the west coast of Johto where it's nothing but dairy farms and dirt roads, which is strange for a port town. But when we're in the Kanto region, we use whatever is closest to us to raise our pokemon. It's pretty cool. You should come out to Olivine sometime. Get out of the city life."

"But don't you live in Blackthorn City?" asked Iris. "How can you own a ranch in Olivine, which is on the coast, and then live in a city that's way up in the mountains almost right next to the Pokemon League?"

"My parents make a lot of money" Edward said with a shrug as if money weren't a big deal to him at all. "We own a couple of properties all over the place, including one in the Sinnoh region. That one isn't as expensive because we've just started traveling there and we're only there for a week at a time."

"I would love to go traveling with you sometime" said Iris. She had just finished her oatmeal and put the empty bowl next to Edward's. "But I think I want to wait until I at least make it to the Pokemon League."

"Or you could just take a year off."

"I'll think about it."

Nothing could be heard but the ominous ticking of the clock on the wall behind them as they sat in silence, trying to think of something to talk about. Iris had known Edward for a few years now, but she still couldn't help but get that feeling of butterflies batting against the edges of her stomach and chills going down her spine when she heard his voice. His very presence left her speechless, and the long trips he took to other regions of the continent only made her crave him all the more when he got back. But she would never admit this to him - a _friend_, and nothing but. She had always assumed he didn't have any interest in her, as he didn't show it much.

"What are you thinking about?" Edward asked as he propped his feet up on the coffee table comfortably.

"Oh, um..." Iris stuttered lamely. "J-just... stuff."

"Stuff." He looked at her with a skeptical eyebrow raised.

"Yeah." Iris turned to the side so that Edward didn't have to see the blush that was slowly creeping into her cheeks. Unfortunately, she couldn't hide this as well as she thought.

"You're turning red" Edward said pointedly.

"It's hot in here, that's all" was the muttered response from the face buried in the leather. Maybe if she made herself melt into the sofa, she wouldn't have to be so embarrassed.

"I didn't think someone so scrawny could even get hot like that" said Edward with a smirk.

"I am _not_ scrawny" said Iris with mock prissiness. She sat up and crossed her arms defiantly, though secretly relieved that she had something to do to cover up the awkwardness.

"Yes you are." Edward poked her in the side, causing her to jump. "See? All bones."

"Don't do that."

"Do what?" Another poke in the ribs.

"That!" Iris said it with a laugh as she pushed Edward's hand away. He sat up all the way so he could poke her some more, which eventually exploded into a full-fledged tickle fight. The two of them laughed hysterically as they continued finding each other's ticklish spots, turning red in the face and breathless. At one point Iris rolled off of the couch by accident and landed hard on the floor with Edward on top.

"Aw crap, are you okay??" he asked, trying to catch his breath. His face went completely serious as soon as they hit the floor.

"Y-yeah, I'm fine" Iris said, also trying to steady her breathing. She hadn't noticed the interesting shade of caramel in Edward's eyes until now, when his face was inches from hers. His hot breath was making her shudder, and she couldn't help but reach up and pull his face closer with her fingers tangled in his long hair. Their lips brushed together and lingered there for a moment before Edward pulled away and stood up quickly.  
"I... I'm sorry" he said as he looked nervously at the floor. "Um, excuse me." He ran straight for the bathroom door nearby and shut the door quickly behind him.

Iris was left laying on the floor as she tried to process what had just happened. There were pictures in her mind, of course, but she couldn't explain it all. She sat up, dizzy and slightly out-of-breath, then slowly moved back onto the couch. Imagining the previous events gave her a tingly but oddly good feeling in places, so she sat with her legs crossed tightly while she bit her nails. She wished she could be back home, in the comfort and privacy of her own bedroom. It was enough to wish Edward hadn't been occupying the bathroom at that moment. On that thought, Iris stood up and went to the door that led to the bathroom, knocking on it lightly.

"You okay Ed?" she asked quietly. After a moment of no response, the lock on the door clicked and the door opened slowly. A red-faced Edward came out, looking anywhere but at Iris.

"Um, I'm sorry if that was awkward" he said as he scratched his head nervously.

"That's alright, but why-"

"Want any more hot cocoa?" Edward asked suddenly.

Iris looked at him for a moment, then decided that she would play along for now - at least until she could sit down with him and talk it over. "Uh, sure, I'll have some. I'll help you do the dishes too."

Two hours can pass fairly quickly when you desperately look for things to do around the house to pass the time. In the remaining time Iris spent with Edward, she had helped him wash all the dishes and put them away, sweep the floor, fold some laundry, and fix up the couch cushions to make it look like they hadn't been having the wrong kind of "fun" while the parents were gone. As they sat down to relax after all these chores had been completely, Edward's parents came in through the front door. A short, heavyset man came in first, carrying a sack of something on his shoulder that looked heavy. He lifted it up with a grunt, then plopped it down hard on the floor and wiped his forehead free of sweat. The mother came in afterward, her lanky, delicate frame greatly contrasting that of her husband's.

"Hello kids" the mother said cheerfully. "Did you have fun? I see you two cleaned up nicely. Thank you."

"Hopefully you didn't have too much fun" said the father. "I don't need any more kids running around the house."

"_Daaaad!_"Edward whined. Iris smacked her forehead in disbelief. If anyone had ever spoken of those kinds of parents that any kid would be embarrassed to be around, mainly with friends, these would be those kinds of parents. Edward got his looks from his mother mostly, who had dark skin and straight, black hair. Her eyes were a bit darker in shade, but had the same almond shape as her son's. The father, however, looked a lot like Danny Devito without the loud and obnoxious voice. The two of them were so lenient with their youngest son that they probably wouldn't have cared if they came back to a trashed house littered with liquor bottles and women's undergarments.

"Um, does this mean I have to leave?" Iris asked timidly. Even being Edward's friend for so long, she didn't spend enough time around his parents to really feel comfortable at their house.

"Just because we got back?" the short man asked. "You don't have to leave. Stay for dinner. Sleep over if you want… But keep the door shut so you two don't wake everyone else up."

"Dad!" Edward whimpered helplessly.  
"Would you like to call your mother?" the tall woman asked politely.

"Sure, I'll let her know" said Iris. "Actually, I have to go back home to get clothes if I'm gonna stay over. So I can ask her when I get there."

"Why don't you just borrow my clothes?" asked Edward. This had actually been the first thing he said to her in the last couple of hours that hadn't been mumbled awkwardly. It almost shocked her to hear that he still had a voice somewhere in there.

"Sure, that sounds good, I guess" said Iris quietly. "Are you sure?"

"Don't be so modest hun!" the woman said. "Make yourself at home. Stay for a couple days if you'd like. You're always welcome here and you've known this."

"Come on" said Edward, walking toward the kitchen.

Iris followed him to the kitchen where the phone sat on a bleach-white countertop. It was one of those "island" counters, the kind that just sat in the middle of the kitchen by itself like a table connected to the floor. Iris had always thought these were interesting and wished that when she bought her own house some day, it would come with a kitchen island. She dialed home and spoke to her mother, who happily gave her permission to stay at Edward's for as long as she wanted. Rose was more than happy that her daughter was getting out of the huose and spending time with someone other than family, though at times Edward _was_ considered part of the family. Iris hung up the phone and decided to help out with lunch, which consisted of enough food to sell at an all-you-can-eat buffet; apparently Edward's family didn't believe in wasted food, nor too much of it.

"I think you gave me a little too much" said Iris, looking at a plate with three tuna sandwiches and a mountain of fries. Her freshly-poured Coca-Cola sizzled in its glass next to the meal. In the center of the table sat a bowl with enough salad to feed each person at the table at least twice, right next to the bowl with twenty different selections of fruit.

"Don't be silly, just eat" the mother said sweetly. "You're very skinny. Whatever you don't eat can go to our pokemon. Nothing bad will happen if we feed them the leftovers. They love it. Or we could just save it all for later." Iris rarely heard the word "leftovers" in the fourteen years she'd lived in Celadon, seeing as her mother and Richard made just enough money to feed the three of them. Yes, Richard helped the family out as much as possible by offering to do some food shopping when Rose couldn't. Rose only worked part-time helping stock shelves at the Department Store, though at the moment she was on vacation because of Christmas.

The four of them ate in silence, all of them seeming ravenous after a long morning. Iris was thankful to have something to do to keep her from feeling awkward and/or saying something embarrassing. She also didn't know what to talk about with Edward's parents there. Edward seemed to have a bottomless pit of a stomach, scarfing down his three sandwiches and then taking a plate of salad and drenching it in ranch dressing. His mother, who had insisted Iris call her Gloria and not "ma'am", got up to help clean up after those who had finished. His father helped. Edward and Iris were left to stare at the untouched bowl of fruit next to the place where the salad bowl had just been.

"You want a pomegranate?" Edward pointed to the bowl.

"A poma-what?" asked Iris confusedly.

"Pomegranate. Indian Apple. They're good." He took one out and handed it to Iris, who turned it in her hands as she inspected it.

"It's like a big rock" she said, sniffing the foreign fruit.

"You crack it open" said Edward with an amused smile.

"You're making me feel really stupid right now" Iris said as she ran her fingers through her hair. It was a miracle her hair hadn't started falling out yet.

Edward took the pomegranate from her and broke it open skillfully over the edge of the table, giving her one half to sample and keeping the other half for himself. "Just eat the little red berries. But be careful of your clothes 'cause the juice stains."

Iris plucked one of the small, red berries from the shell and looked at it for a moment before popping it into her mouth. "It's alright" she said, plucking more from the fruit. "Sort of... sour though."

"Yeah, they're either sweet or sour. Depends."

"I need to talk to you" said Iris as she tried to gather as many of the berries as she could at one time and put them on the table. "What was up with earlier?"

"Earlier?" asked Edward. His face seemed slightly flushed and he began playing with the berries on the table, rolling them around with his fingers.

"Yeah. Why did you hesitate?" asked Iris. She picked up a handful of berries and poured them into her mouth.

Edward sighed, putting his empty shell half on the table. "I was nervous, that's all."

"Or is it that you just don't like me like that?"

Gloria chose the most inopportune moment to walk into the dining room. "Feel free to take more fruit" she said, gesturing to the bowl. "We can always buy more."

"More pomegranate?" asked Edward.

"Pomegranates are weird" Iris responded. "I'll go with an orange."

"Maybe you two would like to go out?" asked Gloria as she picked up the discarded pomegranate shells. Edward and Iris looked at each other. "I mean to the store. Or maybe the movies. Wouldn't that be nice?"

"Um, well, I don't have any money..." Iris began.

"I do" said Edward. "But maybe we should just take a walk. It's not so bad outside today."  
Gloria smiled kindly. "Alright, have fun then. Don't stay out too late, and make sure you bundle up."

"I will Mom" Edward said with a sigh. Iris giggled.

The two of them went into Edward's bedroom to grab their coats and boots, stopping so that Edward could give Iris a propper tour of his room. It wasn't exactly a new room, but it had been about three years since Iris had seen it last. She could remember there being a tattered old Metallica poster over the bed, which had been replaced with a much newer-looking one. The old one was behind the door where it couldn't be seen unless the door was shut. The top two shelves of an old mahogany bookcase, protected with a glass covering, were dedicated to an enormous collection of CDs. They were even put in alphabetical order, starting with Aiden and ending with ZZ Top. One CD was missing from the end of the first row, laying open near the stereo system. Iris picked it up and looked at it, seeing a ghostly white face with makeup-darkened eyes staring back at her.

"Good band" said Edward, sitting down on the queen-sized bed in the corner.

"Evanescence?" asked Iris, turning the CD case over to read the songlist on the back.

"Hey, I like the music. Girl lead singer or not."

"I like your room" said Iris, putting the CD down and turning to the collection of videogames. "We should trade."

"Or we could share" Edward said nonchalantly. He was staring out the window at a Pidgey perched on the balcony. He turned to look at her. "That probably sounded wrong" he said.

"Um, a little" Iris admitted, sitting down next to him. "We never finished our conversation."

Edward shrugged, looking back out the window. He felt a soft hand on his, and he turned quickly to look at Iris. She was looking back at him - or rather gazing - with her green eyes examining his face. Her cheeks were slightly flushed, but she willed herself not to shy away this time.

"I told you I was nervous" said Edward, not moving from that spot. He took a stray strand of Iris' hair and tucked it behind her ear.

"We could always try again" Iris whispered. Edward gazed at her in silence, his lips slightly parted.

_Knock knock._

Edward pulled back, hitting his back on one of the bedposts behind him. "Y-yeah?" he said in a croaky voice.

"Are you planning on going out or what?" came the voice of his father from behind the door. He didn't come in though.

"Um, yes" Edward replied. "W-we're just getting our things together." He rubbed his head in frustration where he had hit it on the bed post.

"Alright. Behave you two. Don't stay out too late." The man's retreating footsteps was the signal for the two of them to relax. Iris was still in the same position, her hand on the spot where Edward's was and her face slightly leaning in.

"You know, I think we really need to bolt your door" Iris said in a huffy voice.

"Or find somewhere else" Edward said as he got up from the bed. "Come on." He took her hand and led her out the front door without a moment's hesitation, taking her to the Department Store. They climbed the stairs to the top and went through the last set of double doors. A light but chilly breeze swept the air, picking up drifts of snow in its path. The sun was positioned just right on the horizon, where there was a perfect view of it from the roof of the building. The sky held a tinge of orange and lavender, making a very picture-esque scene.

"I love it up here" said Iris, stepping forward to look out over the edge. It was strange being here in this calming environment after the storm Team Rocket had caused here just a week before. There wasn't even a trace of the chaos. Iris peered down at the ground, almost expecting to see the limp body of the Nidoking that had fallen off the edge.

"I've seen you come up here before" said Edward. "You like to draw whatever you see. It's a great view."

"Yeah." Iris looked out on the horizon at the setting sun.

"You should draw something for me" said Edward as he followed her line of sight to the shadowy trees in the distance.

Iris, who had taken her bag with her, lifted it up off her shoulders and set it on the ground to rummage through it. She found her sketchbook, which was becoming more and more full by the day, and opened it to a new page. There was a pencil stuck in the spiral binding of it, and she pulled it out and held it above the paper for a moment. After pondering for a moment where she should start, she began with the dark outline of the trees. The sun glowing behind them left only their silhouette, giving the scenery an ominous feeling. With the proper shading, Iris created the slices of orange sun beaming from in between the trees and casting striped shadows on the ground below. The patches of light that weren't blocked by trees reflected off the thin layer of snow and made it sparkle. Iris wished she could capture this phenomenon in her picture, but instead decided to stop drawing.

"It's beautiful" said Iris, shutting her sketchbook.

"It isn't nearly as beautiful as you are" Edward responded in a whisper.

Iris turned to face him, the light catching her emerald eyes and making them sparkle. She smiled up at him, wrapping her arms around his neck. She wasn't nervous at all this time, pulling him closer until their faces were only an inch apart. He rested his forehead on hers for a minute, looking into her eyes and smiling, then pulled her closer to nuzzle her neck.

"Nervous?" Iris whispered into his ear. There was a moment of hesitation, and then she felt him nod slowly in response. She pulled back a little to look into his golden eyes, then quickly pulled him forward for a long-awaited kiss. He took a step back, almost knocked over from Iris' sudden leap into the kiss, then pulled her as close as possible to return it. They kissed in front of the sunset until it disappeared completely and left Celadon City in nothing but darkness lit by a sliver of moon.


	14. Nothing But a Good Time

_(A/N) And here is where I experiment with having a main character act, well, totally out of character. I think it'll be interesting, though it won't last long. I just wanna have some fun with her._

I must warn you, there is a sex scene. Not very detailed, but a sex scene nonetheless.

And where the hell are all my readers? I've gotten reviews from three different people, though I clearly remember there being many more people who had reviewed the prequel. Did you all die??

Anyway, story time.

There was something foreboding about working at the Celadon City Department Store on a Monday morning. It was absolutely deserted, save for some elderly people who had nothing better to do than to wander aimlessly around the store in a state of indecisiveness before they finally go home without buying anything. Everyone else was either working or attending school. There was only one good thing about this, however: There weren't any annoying little kids running around the store knocking down all the canned goods or making a mess of the bathrooms. There were only three people who worked these days, one of them being Rose and the other two being a couple of fresh-out-of-high-schoolers who didn't bother trying hard. They leaned on the counters they were stationed at and gabbed on about where they wanted to meet after work to have fun, or who they thought was the hottest girl in their circle of friends. It had always gotten to the point where Rose was left to restock the shelves by herself and make a note of informing their supervisor for the hundredth time; even on such a slow day, there was still work to be done.

One of the boys who worked Mondays, as well as all the way through Thursday, was a snobby kid named Gary. His grandfather was none other than Professor Oak, _the_ pokemon expert. Just a couple weeks ago, Gary had begun working at the Pokemon League for some money. But when he'd finally grown tired of doing nothing but ushering champions-to-be into the stadium for six hours a day, he moved to the big city only to become a cashier at the Department Store. He wasn't paid as much as his old job, but this job was much easier with his schedule; except Wednesdays. The Department Store was only ever swarmed on Wednesdays, Fridays, and Christmas.

The other boy who worked at the store was very shy and quiet; he kept to himself unless he was with his friends, which got him a job right next to Rose in stocking. His name was Damien - a lanky, long-haired 19-year-old that wore Converse and tight pants as if they were still "the thing" even out of high school. His dark brown hair always hung over one of his eyes, and it seemed as though it were purposely cut that way. His Converse were worn and torn and falling apart, which indicated either a skater boy or a big concert-goer. He even had the studded leather belt to go with it all.

"Damien, can you help me?" Rose asked from the other side of a tall shelf. "You're taller than me. Could you help me get this up here?"

Damien, with his long legs, strode awkwardly around the corner to find Rose trying to get an enormous bag of pokemon food up on the top shelf. It was high above her head, but it looked like something the six-foot-tall Damien could easily manage.

"Hold on" he said, taking one last gulp of an obnoxious-smelling green energy drink from a can. He set it down on a lower shelf, then lifted up the bag of food and set it high up on the shelf. It leaned against a row of the same brand, right above the wide selection of pokemon treats. Damien grabbed his energy drink back and continued guzzling it.

"That crap is going to kill you" said Rose in her motherly tone.

"Only if I have more than three in a day" Damien responded with a smirk. "Says right here on the can that it's not good to have more than three."

"That's your third one by the way" said Gary, coming around the corner. "I hear it's supposed to cause heart problems or something." Damien simply shrugged in response, then walked off in the opposite direction with his drink in hand.

"I knew he seemed hyper today" said Rose, watching the boy walk away. "No wonder he was trying to bowl with the canned goods." Gary snickered at this.

"Your shift is up at 4, right?" Gary asked.

"Yeah, why?" Rose asked as she sorted the goods on a shelf that she could more easily reach. It was really the only thing left to do besides mop the floor, which had been assigned to Damien hours ago.

"Well... I wanted to know if you wanted to go to the casino tonight. A couple of my friends are going, and it never looks like you get out much." Rose raised an eyebrow. "Um, I mean, I never see you go out anywhere... I didn't mean to offend. I just wanted to know if you'd go out... with me."

"I know what you mean" Rose said with a laugh. "But I'd feel like the odd one out. I don't know any of your friends."

"Well, I could introduce you" said Gary. "And if you want, you can bring a friend or two. It'll be awesome, and it's not like we have to travel that far to get there. Just a couple of blocks from here."

"Yeah, I've passed that building from time to time. But... On a Monday night?"

"It'd be like we've taken over the place." Gary grinned mischievously. "Just us, and maybe a couple of old folks that won't really bother us."

Rose finished organizing the next shelf down, then stood up and thought for a moment. She hadn't really gone out for a night on the town with friends, even in the fourteen or so years she had lived in Celadon City. _It would be nice to get out for a change_, she thought. "Alright, that sounds fun. I don't have to work tomorrow, and you won't be working until 2. It'll be perfect."

"Okay, I'll be seeing you there then. 7 o' clock."

The rest of the afternoon passed by like a breeze, to Rose's relief. Even though she had taken Christmas week off, she still found it mentally tiring to be back at work stocking shelves all day when only a total of maybe five people came into the store the entire day. After bidding the two boys goodbye, she made her way back home. The sky was filled with dark grey clouds, promising a storm sometime tonight. But Rose wouldn't let this dampen her spirits. Besides, she'd be inside the whole time and probably gambling away all her money. It would be worth it though, seeing as she hadn't made much of her life since Iris was four. She knew exactly who she would ask to join her at the casino tonight, though she hoped nothing would go wrong. There had been much tension between her and Delilah since she'd came back, and it didn't seem to be getting better. This night out would either make it more awkward, or finally loosen them up.

"I'm home!" called Rose, coming in through her front door.

"You sound happy" said Delilah, sitting on the sofa and staring at the TV. She didn't seem to take interest in whatever it was that was showing.

"Well..." began Rose, hanging up her jacket. "Gary Oak asked if I wanted to go to the Game Corner tonight with him and his friends... I wanted to know if you'd go with me." She turned to the older woman and offered a sincere smile. Delilah smirked.

"You know what they're all gonna be doing, right?" asked Delilah as she got up from the couch. Rose shook her head. "They're gonna end up buying drinks at the bar."

"It's not like we're too young for it" said Rose. "And you know I wouldn't abuse it."

"I know" said Delilah. "I just didn't know if you'd feel comfortable. I can't even picture you drinking with the guys."

"Do _you_ drink?" Rose asked. She followed Delilah into the kitchen, and watched as she began raiding the fridge.

"I took up the habit a few years ago. Depression and whatnot."

"Just make yourself at home" said Rose in an irritated tone. "Don't bother asking me if you can have some food."

"Just a snack." Delilah smirked as she pulled an orange out of the fridge and shut the door.

"Jesus, you're impossible." The woman continued to smirk.

"So you're going to be drinking too?" asked Delilah. She walked to the trash can and began unpeeling her orange.

"I don't mind trying it out" responded Rose, leaning against the counter next to Delilah. "Just for fun. I've never gotten to go out like this before, so I want to make the best of it."

"First-time drinkers always ending up passing out." Delilah finished peeling her orange and began pulling apart the sections. "And then you have the massive hangover in the morning."

"I'll take my chances."

Just then, Iris came drifting into the room and gave her mother a squeeze. "Hi Mom!" she said, bouncing over to the fridge.

"You seem to be in a good mood" said Rose with a smile. Iris simply nodded and smiled.

"Heh, she just got back from that kid Edward's house" said Delilah with a smirk. "Didn't you sleep over there too?"

"Oh stop it Delilah" said Rose. "Her life is her business. If she wants to tell us things, she will."

"Where's Richard?" asked Iris, looking through the fridge for a snack.

"He doesn't get out of work until 7 today" said Rose. "When he does, he'll be keeping an eye on you when I go out. I'm going to the Game Corner for the night with some friends."

"Alright" said Iris, pulling out some ham to make a sandwich. She grabbed the bread and placed everything on the counter, then quickly made her sandwich and went into the living room.

"What if she really is dating that boy?" asked Delilah. "You don't think she's too young?"

"I allow it" Rose said simply. "I trust her more than anything, and I hope you do too. She gets her good judgment from you anyway." Rose turned to give her a hug, which was returned awkwardly with the orange pieces still in Delilah's hands. They pulled away and looked at each other for a moment, then Delilah hesitantly went back into the living room to sit on the couch.

Time passed much slower now that Rose was waiting eagerly to leave for the Game Corner. She continuously checked the clock every five minutes until it finally got to the point where she got up and began cleaning, starting with the living room and working her way to the back of the house. She swept and vacuumed and mopped and washed dishes, making sure she took her time. Delilah watched with an amused look on her face, and Iris and Kane remained absorbed in the TV the entire time. They all knew that Rose was only doing it to pass the time, so they tried to ignore the whir of the vacuum and the clinking of dishes being put away in the cupboard. Finally, as she came back into the living room, the clock said ten minutes to 7.

"Have fun?" Delilah asked. She was currently watching a television show about some Hispanic guy who knew how to tame misbehaved dogs. She found it more amusing than interesting, as she did everything. Iris was sitting next to her and playing a handheld videogame, and Kane was watching with intense curiosity. His violet eyes darted back and forth as he watched the miniature character jump and run and dodge traps, and occassionally the tip of his tail would flick back and forth like a cat's.

"I think I've gotten enough cleaning done for the next few months" Rose responded, sitting down between Iris and Delilah.

"You've been on your feet all day" Delilah said with sincere concern. "You came straight home from work and cleaned for hours, and you hardly have time to sit down before we have to head on over to the Game Corner."

"I'll be fine" said Rose, fixing her ponytail absentmindedly.

_Knock knock._

"I bet that's Gary" said Rose, getting up and hurrying to the door. Delilah got up and went with her. When they opened the door, they were came face-to-face with four guys including Gary. He smirked.

"I remember you" he said, looking at Delilah. "You were the woman with the attitude at the Pokemon League. So, how'd you do? Did you lose?"

"Listen you brat-" Delilah began.

"Hey, that isn't what we're here for" said Rose. "We're supposed to be going out to have a good time." She turned to Iris. "I'm leaving now, and I won't be back until after you've gone to bed. Richard will be here soon, so if there's a problem you have him to talk to. But if something happens, there's a phone number-"

"Rose" Delilah interrupted. "I think she'll be just fine. Nothing's going to happen."

Rose looked at Iris for a moment, than said "... Alright. I'll see you in the morning then." She walked up to Iris and gave her a hug, then headed out the door with Delilah in tow.

The clouds seemed even darker now, and a few stray raindrops fell from them every few seconds. There was a chill in the air, and it would probably get worse. The snow hadn't yet melted and instead stayed on the ground in a light layer as it always had. It had even frozen over slightly so that it went _crunch crunch_ when anyone walked on it. Everyone seemed thankful that there was an actual path to walk through in the snow instead of having to dig their way to wherever they needed to go. The walk took about 15 minutes, and in that time Gary made introductions.

One of the men here was a tall and dark-skinned man with dreadlocks, whom they called Aron. He didn't have much muscle to him, but he sure talked up a storm when you got him into bragging about his level 67 character on World of Warcraft and how he's owned every Nintendo system since the very first one came out. His younger brother was with him, whose name was Nick. He had the same infatuation with videogames, but was much less talkative. He instead decided to play his PSP the whole way there and occasionally nodded or grunted in response when someone was talking to him. The last man in the group to be introduced was Damien, though he only had to be introduced to Delilah. She laughed at the motley crew, feeling as though she were a kid again. This put Rose in an even better mood as well.

They made it to the Game Corner when it was just getting dark and they had just turned on the bright and colorful lights on the front of the building. An enormous neon sign flashed the name "Game Corner", and next to the front door was another neon sign displaying the rules: No drinks except for those you purchase at the bar, no one under 18 can gamble, children must be supervised. These seemed simple enough. They all went inside and as soon as they crossed the threshold onto the multi-colored carpet, Gary and the gang made a bee line for the bar. Rose and Delilah followed after, sitting down on the many stools at the counter.

"What'll it be?" asked the bartender. He was of average build and had tattoos all over the place. He had one long, straight beard on the very tip of his chin like some kind of freakish rock star. He even had the piercings to match - all the way up his ear, on his eyebrow, on his lip, and God knows where else. The men took their orders and then Delilah, who ordered as if she had done this many times before. Rose didn't have time to question it before it was her turn to order.

"Uhh..." Rose said lamely.

"She'll have the Bacardi and lemonade" said Delilah with a smile. She turned back toward Rose. "I might as well order you something you might like, seeing as it's your first time." Rose simply nodded. When the drink came to her, she stared at it for a moment.

"You're supposed to drink it" said Gary with a smirk. His glass consisted of some kind of dark red drink.

"Yeah, I know that!" Rose yelled down the counter at him; he was sitting on the very end next to Damien. "Couldn't you have ordered me some wine or something?"

"They don't sell wine here" said Delilah. "These are all mixed drinks. Just try it. You told me once that you liked lemon."

Rose sat there for a moment and continued to stare at the drink, seeing little bubbles floating around the ice cubes. She shrugged, then picked up the glass took a sip. "It tastes... alright" she said, taking another sip as if to make sure. "It's weird though..."

"Well, it's not like you're drinking juice" said Delilah, sipping her martini. "It has a kick to it."

"Watch our drinks while we head to the slots" said Gary, putting down his glass. He the other two hopped off their barstools and began walking away. "Come on Nick" said Aron.

"Alright, alright, hold on" Nick said quickly. "Let me save first." He had been the only one not to order a drink.

"This ought to be interesting" said Rose, taking a bigger sip every time she let the glass touch her mouth.

"Mmhm" said Delilah, sipping out of her own glass.

They sat in silence for a bit as they watched Gary and the others play on the slot machines. Aron looked like he was close to kicking the living crap out of his, but Gary seemed to be doing alright. The others cheered him on as he won game after game, filling up his bag of coins until no more would fit. He headed for the front desk to trade them for a prize, while Aron watched him enviously. Rose reached the halfway mark on her bacardi and didn't seem to be slowing down. She watched Delilah as she sipped from her glass, not really paying attention to anything else. Delilah finally finished her drink and set the empty glass down on the counter.

"What are you thinking about?" asked Delilah.

Rose seemed to snap out of her trance, looking down at her drink with a blush on her face. "Just... us, I guess."

"What about us?" Delilah saw the bartender coming her way and promptly ordered another drink.

"Well, I had a question, to start" said Rose. "Why haven't you left yet? I thought you couldn't stand me."

"That was years ago" responded Delilah. She took her newly filled drink off the counter and took a sip. "Things are different now. It's like... we're starting all over again or something. I know there will still be feelings there, and reminders of what happened to us, but we have to learn to get past that. What's important right now is Iris. We've already kept this from her for years. I can't come back after all this and let her know the truth, and then take all that away from her and probably risk hurting her even more by leaving again. I'm here to stay as long as you let me. But... I guess I've been... anticipating, you could say, you kicking me out. I've been prepared to buy myself a house here so I can at least see Iris once in a while. I want her to get to know me, and to know what her real mother is like. But it's also up to her whether or not she can see me. If she doesn't want anything to do with me, I can understand."

"I think she wants to get to know you" said Rose, finally finishing her drink. "But I don't think she knows how to approach you. You've been here for a few days. Maybe you should talk to her first, since she hasn't yet come to you. She's very sweet and she has a good head on her shoulders, so the worst she can really do is simply tolerate rather than bond."

"Another bacardi lemonade?" the bartender asked as he came up to Rose.

"Um, oh, yes please" said Rose, handing over the empty glass.

"Hey! Mr. Bartender Guy!" came an approaching voice. It was Damien, running up to the bar with a few dollars in his hand. The bartender ignored him as he mixed Rose's drink and slid it over to her. "Hey you!"

"My name is Paul" said the man, pointing to his name tag in annoyance. "What do you want? Another drink?"

Damien shook his head, his face slightly flushed from his last drink. "I wanted to know if you guys are selling Monster."

"That energy drink crap?" Damien nodded his head. "There's a vending machine over there, but you can't bring it into the casino area. You have to stay here to drink it." Damien headed in the direction Paul was pointing without so much as a "thank you".

"You have some strange friends" said Delilah, already finishing her next martini. She set it down, but waved Paul off as he approached again.

"It seems I'm a lightning rod for weirdness" said Rose as she watched Aron punch his slot machine angrily. The others laughed at him.

"I remember you told me that Gary and Damien work with you," said Delilah, "but what about the other two?"

"Well, I actually don't know Nick." Rose stopped to gulp her drink, then continued. "But his brother, Aron, works on weekends at the Department Store. I only ever see him on the few Saturdays I'm asked to come in and work, but I usually have that day off. I hear he has a lot of brothers and one sister who moved far away. His two older brothers went off to college to become mechanical engineers, Nick works at the videogame store nearby, and the other younger brother is still in high school. Their father was in the military for a while, but inherited enough money from _his_ father to live off of without working. I'm not sure what the grandfather did for a living, but the whole family itself is rich."

"Interesting" said Delilah as she watched the group move from the slot machines to the poker table. "So what's with this Richard guy who's always at your house? Are you two dating?"

Rose gasped and choked a bit on her drink. "No!" she yelled, trying to clear her throat. "I met him here at the Game Corner a few years ago and after we got to know each other, he became almost like family. He was the fatherly figure Iris never had in her life. He would come over on the holidays to visit and he'd even help pay for groceries if we were running short. He's a huge help, though he's never here in Kanto for long."

"What does he do for a living?" Delilah asked.

"Mostly he just travels" said Rose, her voice slightly slurring. She took a huge gulp of her drink to finish it off. "He goes all over the place to collect badges and catch rare pokemon. He likes to learn about them too. I don't think he really stays still for long enough to have an actual job. I guess he just makes his earnings fighting gym battles. I hear trainers win money at the gym." Delilah nodded to confirm this. "Anyway, he's gotten all the badges for this region and actually managed to defeat the Elite Four at the Pokemon League."

"Wow, that's pretty big" said Delilah. "Did you know there aren't actually four members there to defeat?"

"Yeah, I know" said Rose. She nodded to Paul as he walked up to her before he could even ask her if she wanted another drink. "Richard told me that he had to win against this guy named Lance for the championship title, but the first four still count even when you don't beat Lance. Richard didn't win by the way, but went on to train harder. I think he's saving Lance for another day. He has most of the badges from the Kanto region. Just a few weeks ago he told me he got the Goldenrod City badge. And you know, the funniest thing happened..."

Delilah chuckled. "I was the one who fought him outside the gym that day, and he lost. I needed a challenge, but I guess he wasn't it."

Rose slapped her on the arm playfully. "Oh stop that. I think Richard's a great trainer."

"How old is he by the way?" asked Delilah.

"He'll be 46 in April. I know he's a lot older than me, but I see him as my best friend. He's always there when I need him. When both Iris and I need him. I don't even know how I can repay him for everything he's done for us. I think he's been wanting to date me for a while, so he could be more like Iris' father, but I just can't see myself doing that." Delilah started laughing again. "What is so funny??"

"You know, you talk _so_ much when you're drunk" said Delilah.

"I'm not drunk." Though the flush on Rose's cheeks told otherwise.

"It's good to be able to talk to you though" Delilah said. "Um, but I think you need to slow down on those drinks..." Rose looked down to see that she had finished off half of her third drink, and already the room looked like it was tilting. She blinked the feeling away and concentrated on Delilah, who was looking at her with concern.

Rose scoffed. "I'll be okay. This will be my last one."

Two more drinks later, Rose had finally decided to join the gang at the pool table. They had migrated here to have some fun, and Delilah had gone off to play poker. Rose got into talking to Damien about whatever came to mind, though she couldn't remember for the life of her what went on in the conversation. She could remember bits and pieces, like when she rambled on about her family life and admitting to having been married to Delilah. But distinguishing between an "indoor voice" and an "outdoor voice" was completely forgotten in the time she'd sat at the pool table, during which everyone within ear shot, meaning everyone at the pool table and near it, heard her life story. Damien suggested that she take the time to compose herself and relax, though she insisted on talking his ear off.

"Alright, I got this one" said Gary, strutting up to the pool table and grabbing the stick from Aron. He lined up his shot and fired away, pocketing the black ball along with a few others that weren't even his colors. "Dammit" he said, throwing the pool stick aside.

"I'm bored" Nick complained, pulling his PSP out and turning it on.

Swaying slightly, Rose got up from her seat to see what Delilah was doing. In her clouded reality, she could hear garbled noises that sounded like laughter. Gary and the others watched her in amusement as she used the pool table to hold herself up, walking over to the other end of the room with hindered equilibrium. She found Delilah at the poker table with an endless mountain of playing chips in front of her. Rose pulled up a chair and sat next to her, moving over as close as possible and resting her head on the older woman's shoulder.

"I think you've had too much to drink" said Delilah as she made a bet on her hand of cards. Rose shook her head defiantly. "After this game I'm taking you home." She shook her head again. Delilah sighed.

"Iris can't see me like this" Rose muttered.

"I'll bring you right to bed. Besides, do you even know late it is right now?"

Rose took a moment to think. "Half past 8?"

"No, that's what time it was when you were on your third drink" said Delilah. "It's a quarter to midnight."

"Will you sleep with me?" Rose asked, looking up at Delilah with hazy eyes.

There was a pause. "... I can't do that" said Delilah. She set her cards down face-up on the table to show her winning hand, scoffing as she saw more chips coming her way.

Rose snickered into Delilah's shoulder. "You have a dirty mind."

"I'll sleep IN bed with you," said Delilah, "if that's what you're asking."

"What if I wanted differently?" Rose slurred, attempting to move herself to a poor excuse for a standing position; she managed to stand up for minute before falling over, and Delilah caught her as she nearly missed the chair.

"What do you mean by that?" asked Delilah. "...You know, never mind. I don't want to know. We need to get you home, come on." Delilah stood up from the table and stretched. She helped hold Rose up and guide her to the others, who were wrapped up in a discussion about their favorite hot actresses.

"I'm taking Rose home guys" Delilah said.

"You gettin' laid too?" asked Aron from within the group. Delilah rolled her eyes and headed for the front doors. She wrapped her arms around Rose's shoulders to keep her warm against the torrential downpour that had started, hurrying down the street and taking a turn around the corner. She remained patient with the drunken woman, despite the fact that she continuously rambled on about food cravings and sexual fantasies the whole way there.

"When we get home, you're going right to bed" said Delilah.

"I'm not a kid" said Rose, stumbling to keep up even with Delilah holding her steady.

"But I'm still going to take care of you."

They finally made it home at midnight on the dot, as displayed on the clock in the dark living room. Richard was fast asleep on the couch, an arm and a leg hanging limp over the edge. He muttered something in his sleep, then turned over and pulled his blanket tight around himself. Delilah led Rose to her room and carefully sat her on the bed, then went upstairs real quick to check up on Iris. She was buried under a mountain of blanket with Kane curled up in a ball at the end of the bed. The orange glow of his tail filled the room like a campfire, forming dancing shadows all over the walls. Delilah smiled and shut the door carefully. She made it back downstairs and back to the bedroom, just in time to see Rose lying completely naked on the bed.

"What are you doing?" asked Delilah, crossing her arms without the slightest look surprise on her face.

"I don't want to sleep with clothes on" said Rose, shutting her eyes and laying on her back comfortably.

"At least get under the covers" said Delilah. "You're going to be cold." She took the blankets from the end of the bed where they were folded neatly and pulled them up over Rose. "Do you have any pajamas I can wear?"

"Sleep naked with me" said Rose. "You'll keep me warm." There was a hint of sincerity behind her voice, even though there were hardly any coherent words coming out of her mouth.

Delilah sighed for what seemed like the hundredth time tonight. "This isn't appropriate." She took her shirt and pants off, then slipped into the bed next Rose. Rose turned to face her and wrapped her arms around Delilah.

"I said naked" she complained, tugging at Delilah's bra clasp. She rolled her eyes and took that off as well, her nipples immediately hardening from the cool air; she pulled the blankets up to her chin.

"Happy now?" she asked. "Now get to sleep." She gasped as she felt Rose trying to get her panties off. "None of that" Delilah said, grabbing the offending hand and pulling it away. "I know what you're getting at and I'm not going to let you do it."

"Why won't you let me?" Rose whined as she tried to get her hand free.

"I'm not going to explain this to you while you're drunk. We just can't do it."

"It's just this once" said Rose, managing to pull her hand free and grasp Delilah's panties again. She sighed.

~~~~~

~~~~~

~~~~~

_This is so bad... _Delilah thought as she gripped the blankets underneath her. She moaned as another wave of pleasure washed over her. _We really shouldn't be doing this... This is wrong. Oh God..._ Her fingers were tangled in Rose's hair, and her back arched with every moan. _She doesn't even know what she's doing..._ The feeling suddenly faded, and Delilah looked down to see that Rose had passed out right between her legs. She pulled the woman's limp body up, laying her gently beside her and stroking her back.

Suddenly, Delilah began laughing. She laughed until she was crying, and cried until she eventually cried herself to sleep.


	15. Amazing

The next day, which ended up being a peculiarly warmer day despite it being the very beginning of January, Rose sat miserable at the dining room table with her forehead pressed against the cool wood. She woke up much earlier with the pounding headache that seemed to press on her eyes, and it was reluctant to leave her. Delilah comforted her as best she could, but hadn't yet explained to her the events of the previous night. Rose was left to her own imagination, which shocked her enough to ask no further. When she got out of bed, Iris explained to the two of them and Richard that she needed to obtain the gym badge there in Celadon City before moving on to the next town, and Richard agreed to buy Iris a bike as a gift if she won. That would make traveling to Fuchsia City so much easier, seeing as it was three cities away.

"Is there something wrong?" Iris had asked suddenly. She looked nervously from Delilah to Rose and back again, as if she could clearly see the tension between the two. Delilah shook her head and set a fresh cup of hot coffee in front of the younger woman, who took it and sipped it slowly.

"I think that may be the last time your mother is allowed to go out to parties" Delilah said jokingly to lighten the mood.

"Her mother, huh?" Rose said bitterly under her breath. "That's a little heartless. You're her mother too."

"I was kidding." Delilah sat next to her at the table, stroking her back.

"I think I'm gonna go for a walk" said Iris. "It's nicer out than usual, so I might as well take advantage of it." She got up from the table, almost too quickly, and left with her bag and Kane following closely.

"So… About last night…" said Rose, staring at her steaming mug. "Did we… do something?" she blushed a little as she asked this.

"Um, yeah, we did" said Delilah.

They sat in silence for a moment, then Rose asked "Then what does that mean for us?"

"What do you mean? What happened just… happened. There isn't much more to say about it."

"But what about Iris? What about everything we used to have?" Rose's voice cracked, and she was quick to cover it up by taking another sip of coffee. "This can't work out, for us or Iris, if we allow all this distance between us."

Delilah gazed at her for a while, as if struggling to read her thoughts. "Why are you thinking of this all of a sudden?" she asked. "Did all that alcohol trigger something in your brain?" She said this with a smirk, which actually made Rose smile for a moment.

"No, I just… I'm just confused" said Rose hesitantly. "I need to know where we stand. You came back here, to come visit me. It had to have been for a reason. I'm starting to think you missed me, even if it was just a little bit. I missed you too. I don't remember much at all about last night, but whatever happened must have brought back some feelings for you."

"It did" said Delilah. "At least while it lasted." Rose gave her a questioning look, then completely understood when Delilah had explained the ordeal to her in full detail.

"But there are still feelings" said Rose, not as a question but a statement.

"Yeah" Delilah agreed. "… Where are you going with this?"

"I was wondering if, well…"

"Hey, I think you two should come look at this" Richard said from the living room. Rose and Delilah both got up from the table and made their way into the next room where Richard was sitting on the couch watching the TV. There was a news program on with a very familiar blond news reporter sitting at a desk.

"This is Kirsty Renolds, here to bring you news coverage on the latest Team Rocket happenings in the area. Though they seem to have left the Kanto region, there have been speculations of a base just off the coast of Fuchsia City where Team Rocket leader Giovanni is said to be hiding from police. Right now it is too dangerous for any law enforcement to infiltrate this base and capture Rocket members, but a few very brave souls have trained and volunteered to get inside and find out what's going on. Now, these individuals had been keeping police up-to-date with what they've learned about the events within the building up until about a day ago. Communications have been lost, and the six members of this "freedom fighter" team haven't been seen since then. Police are attempting to recruit those who are willing to break in and smoke out Team Rocket, but with no such luck. We'll be back in about an hour for a more thorough update."

"That sounds bad" said Richard, turning off the TV and putting down the remote. "Iris wanted to head on down to Fuchsia City, but it may be too dangerous with Team Rocket so close to there."

"And you know what Team Rocket is capable of doing" said Delilah, speaking to Rose. She nodded, her hands wrapped around her coffee mug. She took a sip from it, then set it down on the table in front of the couch.

"We'll have to let Iris know" said Rose. "Maybe things will settle down on that end of the continent before she has to leave to get that badge. Unless she can skip over that one and get the next one for now… Could she do that?"

"You know, I have no idea" said Richard. He looked at Delilah, who shrugged. "We should look that up sometime then."

"I think I'll get dressed and see what Iris is up to" said Rose. She turned to Delilah. "Would you like to come too? I-I mean come with me on the walk, not to see me get dressed." She laughed. "I just need to take a shower and then I'll be ready."

Delilah shook her head. "I need a shower too, so you'd have to go on without me."

"We can share. There's nothing wrong with that." Rose had said it quietly, out of earshot of Richard. She smiled almost seductively, which was something Delilah really couldn't say 'no' to. The two of them headed to the bedroom to collect some clothes, and then went into the bathroom. Within the white-tiled room, Rose began taking her clothes off right away. She was stark naked before Delilah could even start undressing.

"This is really… out-of-the-blue" said Delilah confusedly as she tried not to stare too much at the other woman. "You didn't seem to want much to do with me until you heard about last night. I'm a little confused." Nevertheless, she slipped her shirt off and struggled to unclasp her bra.

"I think it was more like a slap in the face" said Rose, offering to help Delilah with her bra difficulties. "Not in a bad way though. It was more like… A sudden realization."

"Realization? Of what?" asked Delilah breathlessly. Rose's naked breasts were pressed against Delilah's back as her bra dropped to the floor, and she felt warm arms wrapped around her body.

"That maybe we should put the past aside. It's been ten years already. I think that's long enough to get the chance to start over, wouldn't you think? Besides, we need to do this for Iris."

"Mmm, yeah…" said Delilah in a whisper. Rose began kissing her neck up and down softly, her hands slowly undoing Delilah's pants. "Sh-shouldn't we start the shower…? We can't spend all day in here."

"Well that's no fun" Rose said with a laugh, and then she went over to turn the shower on.

* * *

  
Iris, having already made it quite a few blocks away, was humming to herself quietly as she walked down the streets with Kane in tow. Her backpack hung over her shoulder, and she held onto the strap securely. Kane watched the people of Celadon City walk to and fro, and then he looked to Iris and tilted his head curiously.

"We're heading for the gym, but just to train" said Iris. "This will help us get ready for the real battle, and we can finally get our badge." Kane nodded, then sped up a couple steps to catch up with Iris and walk beside her. The gym was located in the far southwest of town almost hidden behind a long row of trees that lined the narrowing sidewalk. There weren't many people walking around here, since the gym was the only building in the area. Iris did, however, find a young woman sitting outside the gym door on the doorstep. She looked distraught, so Iris approached her to see what was going on.

"You alright?" she asked.

The woman looked up and pushed aside a strand of wavy brown hair. "I'm supposed to be a member of this gym, but one of my pokemon just… ran off. I don't know what it was or why she would do that. This is the first time ever..." Iris noticed the woman had a Raticate, which was currently sitting next to her and nibbling on a treat. Its nose twitched as it picked up the unfamiliar scent of Kane, and it looked at him hesitantly.

"When did she run off?" Iris asked.

"Just about an hour ago. She looked like she saw something and ran off in that direction." The woman pointed down the narrow sidewalk where it led back to the main city. "That was the last I saw of her. I don't see how she can get so far, seeing as it's hard enough as it is for her to walk, but I went after her and looked around and everything. I didn't see her. This is a pretty big city, so she could be anywhere. Or she could have been taken."

"You should probably ask around" Iris said as she sat next to the woman. Kane followed suit and sat down next to her, watching the two as they spoke. "What kind of pokemon is she?"

"She's a really old Houndoom that I call Melyssa. She's only got three legs, so like I said, she shouldn't be able to get far at all."

"For an old, crippled pokemon, wouldn't she be strong enough with all the training?" Iris asked.

"Oh, no, I don't train her" said the woman. "She's very friendly to everyone, so I bring her places to meet people. Everyone loves her. Her favorite place to go is the hospital. I usually do charity work there, and Melyssa makes sure she keeps the patients at least calm."

"Hmm. Still, someone's bound to recognize her and know she belongs to you." Iris looked down the long pathway heading away from the gym, then back to the woman. "Why don't you make flyers? I could help you put them up around the city, and you can hand them out to people too."

"That sounds like a good idea" said the woman. She stood up, and then looked at Iris strangely. "You know, you look just like someone I remember seeing years ago. A friend of someone I met in Viridian City." Iris was going to respond, but then she saw Delilah and Rose approaching.

"What's up kiddo?" asked Delilah as they got close."I was trying to help this woman out, before I went training" said Iris. "Um, I never got your name actually." She turned to the woman, who smiled sheepishly.

"My name's Danielle" she said. "And if I remember, your name is Rose." She said this to Rose, who smiled back.

"It's been years, but I remember you" said Rose. "I don't think you were more than six years old when we met."

"Actually, I was eight when we met" Danielle corrected. "I was a premature baby, and I guess that made me look younger than I really was. I'm a gym trainer now, here at this gym. Right now I'm trying to find my pokemon. She ran away not too long ago, and I want to try and make some flyers."

"And I was helping" said Iris."Are you… related to Iris?" Danielle asked. "Or are one of you her mother?"

Delilah and Rose looked at each other, then Delilah spoke up. "I'm her mother actually. And I came here to tell her something." Iris looked at her questioningly. "It might be too dangerous to move on to Fuchsia City after you get your badge here. There was a news report on TV about Team Rocket, and they discovered a secret location where the leader's been hiding. I think all of them get together over there when they don't have business here on the mainland. Anyway, it's off the coast of Fuchsia City, and they say some people went missing there. You might want to wait until they've cleared that area out."

"Alright" said Iris. "There's no hurry anyway. Is it alright if I go with Danielle to help her out?"

"Just don't get into trouble" Rose responded in that motherly tone. "And don't take too long. We're all going out to eat for lunch, so I want you nearby when we're ready to go." The two of them, Rose and Delilah, walked back down the narrow path that led to the larger part of the city.

"You didn't tell me about that" said Delilah.

Rose looked at her and smiled. "Well, _we_ are her parents, so _we_ are going to do this right. I figured I'd take us all out to eat, since we haven't really been out much together."

"Is the old man coming with us?" Delilah asked with a smirk.

"Yes, he is!" said Rose with a light, playful push. "He's part of the family too."

They walked in silence the rest of the way, coming to a stop at the enormous Department Store with the fountain out front. They went inside and shopped around for a bit, buying a few things for the house like cleaning supplies and food. Rose smiled brightly the entire time, happy that Delilah was offering to pay for most of the things. She was finally trying to be a part of the family, and it seemed as though things were really smoothing out for the two of them. They eventually brought all their items to the cashier - Gary was working this shift and greeted them briefly - and once they paid, Delilah insisted on carrying most of the bags as they headed out of the store. As they walked out and made their way home, the two of them noticed that the sky was filling up with dark grey clouds again and the air was becoming chillier.

"I guess the shitty weather's coming back" said Delilah as she looked up at the sky.

"Mhm" Rose responded shortly. As soon as she said that, a few flakes of snow began falling down. They came down gradually heavier until it was almost a sheet of it in front of their faces. Overhead, a large flying pokemon appeared with what looked like a trainer riding on its back. The pokemon looked familiar, and the two women stopped dead in their tracks. Their heads turned to the sounds of light footsteps, and they were soon face-to-face with what one would call a herd of Arcanine. Riding on their backs were four people, two of which were very familiar faces.

"Chris? Ivory??" Rose asked incredulously.

Chris, at the front of the group, smirked. "It's been a while, but yeah. How's it goin'?"

"Um, g-good" stuttered Rose, both from shock and from cold. "What in the world are you guys doing?"

"You've probably been listening to the news this week" said Ivory to the left of Chris. "Or I assume so. We've found Team Rocket Headquarters just off of the coast of Fuchsia City. We're the group of people who went in to see what they were doing. They almost captured us, but we made it out. The leader is there along with his brother Vincent, who we found out was supposed to take over for Giovanni very soon."

"Yeah, we remember Vincent" said Delilah, making a face. "So what's up with all those pokemon out here?"

Ivory beamed brightly. "We released most of these from the laboratory in the base. If you can see up there on the roof…" She pointed to the roof of a nearby building, where the giant pokemon had landed. They could now clearly see that it was Articuno. "… we took it from Team Rocket and now we're bringing it back home. It helped us fight them off. That man on its back is Ben, another member of the team. His brother Dan should be coming any moment now on his Charizard. And these two are Meghan and Katrina." She pointed to the two women mounted on their pokemon behind her, one of which had her Pikachu sitting comfortably in her lap.

"If you all were on an island, then how did you get all these dogs on land?" Rose asked. "Can they even swim that far?"

"The ones willing to come with us rather than being afraid were put into pokeballs" said Ivory. "Some of them actually _could _swim, so we let them free in the ocean. The flying ones either went off on their own, or came willingly with us. Dan is trying to lead the ones that can fly over to this end of the continent and then hopefully we can find a place to release them."

"That's pretty impressive" said Delilah, sincerely amazed by all the courageous effort. "We would invite you to lunch with us, but it looks like you have some unfinished business to take care of." She looked up at the giant bird pokemon waiting patiently to take off for the skies again.

"If ever you wanted to join in on the fun, you're free to do so" said Chris, feeling around his pocket for a cigarette.

Rose scoffed. "I think we've had enough 'fun' from Team Rocket. Thanks for the offer though."

"Alright, time for us to get going then" said Chris. "I see Dan now." They all looked up and saw the Charizard that was carrying the man high above the ground. It circled for a moment, then continued onward. Behind it, an entire flock of pokemon flew after it. The Articuno flew upwards and followed the group, then Chris turned to Rose again. "See ya guys around I guess." His Arcanine took off at lightning speed, with the others following closely after. Nothing was left of them but large paw prints in the snow.

Rose and Delilah made it home in time to put away the groceries and then tell Richard that they were all going out to lunch and he was invited; he gladly took up the offer. He helped put all the groceries and supplies away, and then went into the bedroom to change clothes. The three of them left the house and made their way down the street, though it was only a few blocks before they ran into Iris. She was handing some flyers out to the people walking by.

"Hey" she greeted shortly. Kane was doing his best to hand out flyers, but he attempted to also hand them out to pokemon. They all refused and kept walking, only to be followed around. "Kane, the pokemon don't need the flyers" said Iris. "Just the people."

"There's a small restaurant near here that I thought you guys might like" said Rose. "It's my treat."

Delilah looked at her. "I thought it was _my_ treat?"

"You paid for most of the groceries."

"All three of us can split it" said Richard, trying to be diplomatic as always. "It's easier on our wallets anyway, seeing as the only restaurant nearby is a sushi bar."

As they all headed for the restaurant, Rose muttered under her breath to Iris "I'm still paying for most of it. _My_ treat." Iris laughed.


	16. You Found Me

_A/N: Here is where you'll find THE longest dialogue EVER, later on in the chapter. But it's good to let my characters go on a rant if it means learning more about them. It's crucial to the story, really. So no falling asleep!_

About two years had passed since then, and things really seemed to be working out for everyone. Rose and Delilah were fighting much less now, and it didn't seem like they'd leave each other any time soon. However, they didn't seem nearly as close as they had been years ago. The two of them had eventually explained to the questioning Richard everything about them, almost all the way back to when they first met. After a while, Richard moved on to continue his journey around the continent as he learned more and more about rare pokemon. Edward, to Iris' dismay, had to move on as well. He left for the Sinnoh region where his rich parents owned yet another pokemon ranch. He had promised to write, and he kept up with weekly letters the entire time. Team Rocket had once again settled down, and there was absolutely no word of them. It was summer now, and the sun brought on a torrent of hot sunshine that seemed to set all of Kanto on fire. This was now beach season, and many half-dressed women and even men roamed the streets whether there were beaches or not. This was commonly seen at the Department Store, where shoppers either went in just to take advantage of the air conditioning system or they went out on the roof to tan. After obtaining her fourth badge, the Rainbow Badge from Celadon City, as well as the rest of her badges for this region, Iris went on to train further with the help of Richard before he left. With all the training, which went on for quite a few months, Kane had finally evolved into Charizard. Because of this, Iris had a much easier time traveling the region.

She was old enough and experienced enough now to fend for herself against anything that came her way, and she knew she had to say her goodbyes once again as she moved on to the Johto region. There was much for her to discover and to explore there, and her dreams of finally being able to fly had come true. Richard encouraged her to take any path she felt was right for her, and to keep up with her hobby of drawing. He saw some monetary gain in this for herself whenever she wasn't on the road. Her parents urged her to write to them whenever she had the chance to let them know she was okay, and to come visit for the holidays. Iris promised them that she would visit as often as possible and write to them at least once a week. And then, it was time to leave. Outside, there wasn't so much as a light breeze to ease all the heat, and it left Iris wishing it were legal to be out here with absolutely no clothes on just to keep cool. She almost chuckled at the thought, passing by the old oak tree and making her way to an area in the backyard where there was no grass. It was a simple flattened circle of dirt, and here is where Iris found Kane lying in the soil to keep cool. He lifted his large head and looked at her curiously.

"It's time to leave again" she said. "Come on."Kane nodded, then groaned as he lifted his new body up off of the ground. He shook off some of the dirt from his wings and legs, then bent down to allow Iris to climb on his back. She fit perfectly laying on her stomach with her arms around his neck, her knees gripping his sides firmly. When she was comfortable, Kane took off. For such a big pokemon, he was surprisingly agile. He was above the house in an instant, soaring over it and further upward until they were almost as high up as the Department Store. They reached the building and Kane circled around it, then swooped low to the ground. He dropped to a mere inch above ground, then gave one enormous flap that shot him back up again. Iris held on tightly as the Charizard spun upward with his wings close to his body, and then he evened out and flew straight - straight toward the city limits, and beyond this until they saw nothing but a mass of green rushing past them below.

The countryside went by in a blur - the fields and forests and hills, all one big canvas of blurred colors as they flew onward. They soon found themselves soaring over a mass of deep blue as they reached the ocean. Some tiny dots of boats were out on the water here. Kane swooped down close to the water until he was so close that he could see his reflection, and then he dipped his legs in it. This sent a spray of water shooting behind him, and Iris laughed. Kane shot up once more so that he was high up in the air again, straightening out and continuing on.

"Hey look, Cycling Road" said Iris, pointing over Kane's shoulder and at the bikers traveling along the immensely long bridge below. Kane dipped, getting close enough for the bikers to see him flying overhead. A few of them stopped to watch them soar by, their mouths opened in awe. Around these parts of Kanto, it wasn't customary to travel on a pokemon; that was what the bike trail was for. The trail, an enormous stone bridge that had been standing for longer than Iris had been alive, stretched outward from the peninsula where Fuchsia City was located and turned to stretch further on until it touched the coast again. Richard had kept his promise and bought Iris a bike months ago to use until Kane evolved, and Cycling Road was perfect for traveling from Celadon City to the more southern areas of Kanto. Now that Iris had all her badges, she planned on heading out to Pallet Town to update her pokedex and talk to Professor Oak about moving on to the next region.

The trip took a couple hours, and Iris had almost fallen asleep a few times. She forced herself to stay sitting upward until they made it to their destination. At around 4 o' clock, with Iris' shoulders and face burning from prolonged sun exposure, they saw the miniscule Pallet Town below. Kane descended fast, landing right on the edge of the lake toward the south. Iris dismounted, stretched, and then they both began walking down the dirt path."Wow" said Iris, looking around her. "I haven't been here since I was ten. It's been so long. Nothing's changed much though." Kane nodded his large head in agreement. It took only a minute to walk from the lake to the enormous laboratory further up the path where they would find Professor Oak. There, Kane waited outside the double doors as Iris went in.

"Oh, I was hoping I'd see you again" said Professor Oak, who had been standing right near the front doors. "You caught me by surprise though. How are you?"

"I'm good" said Iris happily. "Kane finally evolved into Charizard. I got all my badges for Kanto, and I've decided I want to move on to get the Johto badges before I go to the Pokemon League. I want to make sure I'm ready."

"Ah, I see." The professor beckoned for Iris to follow him to the front of the lab where his desk and computer were. They walked past many large machines and some men in lab coats working on them. In the front room, Oak sat down at his computer. "I will need your pokedex" he said, holding his hand out. "I'll update it for you so it can archive more species of pokemon." Iris handed him the pokedex from her pocket, and he plugged it into the computer. She watched as he opened up many files on the screen, and it was obvious he had done this countless times before. He found the file he was looking for and booted up the program inside, which made a little beeping noise as it downloaded itself to the pokedex. The upgrade was completed quickly, and Oak unplugged it to give back to Iris.

"Thank you Professor Oak" said Iris, taking back her pokedex.

Oak nodded. "With the upgrade, you can store information on over 200 new species of pokemon. You'll need to come back once you get all the Johto badges for an upgrade for the next two regions, which have very exotic and rare pokemon to find. Maybe you'll catch one." He gave an encouraging smile.

"Thank you again Professor" said Iris, shaking Oak's hand. "I'll keep in touch. Bye." She walked back out the automatic doors, meeting up with Kane outside the building.

"This is great Kane" said Iris, inspecting her pokedex. "This helps a lot. It's like we're starting all over again. We've got a lot ahead of us. Come on, let's take a walk for a bit. I miss being on the ground." She laughed, heading toward the northern part of town where the path led into a more deserted part of town. It was very quiet, and Kane couldn't help but look around suspiciously as they walked. The end of his flamed tail flicked back and forth as if he expected something to jump out at him any moment.

A light breeze began picking up the dust on the side of the dirt road, adding to the ominous atmosphere. There was no one around, not even a single wild pokemon. It was as though the entire world had died. Iris and Kane reached the end of the road where Pallet Town ended and the Viridian Forest began a few yards ahead. Iris stopped in her tracks as she heard a _creak creak creak _noise from behind her. Turning around, she spotted an old and broken down home with a front porch. Oddly, the house seemed to draw her in, and she couldn't help but walk closer to it to get a better look. Up the few broken and rotting steps, on the front porch, was a wooden swing in equally poor condition. It swayed in the breeze, and the rusting chains were what caused the eerie creaking noise. Iris swallowed hard, then approached the steps and walked up them. She ignored the front door, which had been boarded up along with the windows, and instead went to the swing and sat down in it. It held her weight easily, so she began kicking her feet lightly to make it go back and forth. Kane looked at her confusedly, staying off the porch and watching her from the path.

"This place is really creepy" said Iris. "I bet this would pass off as some haunted house or something. It'd be cool to look inside."

"Child, that house has been abandoned longer than you've been alive." Iris jumped at the raspy voice that cut through the silence and saw that there was an old man standing on the other side of the road. He was balding and wrinkled, and he leaned heavily on a metal cane.

"What, do you watch this house all the time or something?" said Iris once she regained her old man chuckled, his eyes wrinkling on the sides even more than they already did. "I lived here many years ago, with my wife. We had a daughter younger than you at the time. She was just as beautiful as her name."

"Oh" said Iris simply. "Is there some historic meaning behind the house?"

"No dear, but it has a lot of sentimental value." The old man looked up at the house fondly with pale blue eyes. "I left this house when my wife became... too difficult to live with. She was very cruel to our daughter, but in my haste to get away from the stress and poverty, I left my only daughter with my wife. I haven't seen her since, and it's such a burden to carry knowing what I've done."

"But it sounds like you were desperate" said Iris, getting up off the swing. She stood at the top of the steps and leaned against one of the columns holding up the porch's roof. There was something odd about the old man. Something almost familiar. "You remind me of someone I know."

"That tends to happen dear" said the man, still standing in the same spot.

"You look like someone who lives with me and my mother" Iris continued. "He's like a father to me and I love him a lot. His name's Richard."

"You are very lucky to have a father who cares so much, and who is there for you when you need him." There was a sad look in the man's eyes as he spoke. "You look like you live a very generous life. Do not ever question it, or wish for anything more. What you have is more than I've ever had, and more than I've ever been able to give to my only daughter."

"Who was your daughter?" asked Iris. "If you don't mind me asking..."

"Her name is Rose." The old man smiled as he said her name.

"R-Rose??" Iris asked incredulously. "That's my mother!"

The old man looked surprised but happy, his eyes sparkling. "She has a beautiful daughter, and you are quite lucky yourself child."

"Thanks, I guess" said Iris timidly. "Maybe you should go see her, since it's been years. I bet she'd love to see you again."

"I would think if anything, she'd hate me for leaving" the man said. "It would be too hard on this old man's heart if I travel all the way to where she is, only to find out that she doesn't want anything to do with me."

He approached the old house and slowly made his way up the steps, sitting down on the swing when he got to the top. He laid his cane on his lap and looked up at the clouds. "I've known nothing more than suburban life. I lived here with my wife until I was 30, then I moved on to live in Viridian City. Both Pallet Town and Viridian City are small towns. The city life seems to be a bit too much for me. Around here it's quiet, and it's nice to live out my remaining years in peace. There wasn't any peace of mind when I lived with my wife and daughter; I only found it in Rose's happiness, which had been something rare to see living with a tyrant of a mother. I did try, do not get me wrong. I worked for a packaging and shipping company, so the hours always changed and I often found myself working 12 hours a day. I didn't complain because I knew I needed all the money I could get, and what I made was barely enough to keep food on the table. Some days we never even ate dinner. Because I was never around, my wife became bitter and sullen. She took up the awful habit of drinking, and it soon caused her to lose her job and her ability to find a new one. Her anger was always taken out on our daughter, but time after time I intervened. It eventually got to the point where it was absolutely impossible to live here. So I ran."

Kane, having moved closer to the porch, watched the man intently as he told his story. It was almost as if he understood what he was saying, or part of it anyway. Iris leaned against the banister on the other end of the small porch, watching a bright green Caterpie scale the side of the house. She watched it with mild interest as her mind took her back in time to over 20 years ago. She tired to imagine how difficult life must have been for Rose, but she just couldn't picture such a horrible childhood. Iris had always lived a good life with a loving mother and someone she could easily call her father, so she could never relate to Rose's life. She could never be comforting and say "I've been there. I know what you went through." And for a moment she wished she actually could, even if that didn't make much sense.

"You look very pensive" said the man as he watched his only grandchild."Um, what?" Iris said, snapping out of her trance.

"Thoughtful, child. Thoughtful. You seem as though you have such a deep understanding of the world for someone so young. What is it that you're thinking? If you don't mind me asking."

Iris sighed. "There's a lot my mother never told me. I mean, I've been pretty close to her. She cares so much about me. But… She never takes the time to sit down with me and talk about her life, even if it's just telling me how bad it's been. Or is. I want to know. I want to at least try and comfort her. Sometimes it feels like I'm being the mom. That might be why I grow up faster than I age. You get what I'm saying, right?"

The man nodded, turning to watch a Pidgey that had landed on a nearby fence to preen its feathers. It cocked its head curiously, looking back at the man. "Do you see that bird?" he asked.

Iris looked at it too. "Yeah?"

"Have you ever wished you could be just like it? To be able to fly and just get away from it all? Life would be more simple if we could all grow wings."

"I think everyone wishes to have that kind of freedom" responded Iris. "Even living in a huge city with lots of people gets boring after so long."

"Then you're lucky to be a pokemon trainer" said the man. "You have the opportunity to see more of the world than most others. I began working at 15, so I wouldn't have had the chance to train pokemon and collect badges. Years later I had a family to support. I didn't have the time, and I certainly couldn't give up work because I needed all the money I could possibly earn. I needed to be home too, for Rose."

"I think if you ever had the chance," said Iris, "you should go see your daughter. I don't think she could hate you after it's been so long. She doesn't hold grudges."

With some difficulty, the old man stood up and leaned on his cane. He slowly made his way down the steps and turned to face Iris. "You will probably see Rose before I do. When you do, let her know that I will try my best to come see her again. I am not quite ready to talk to her right away, but I will try in the near future now that I know where she is. I do not want to seem like I am abandoning her again." He turned and began walking away.

"Wait" said Iris. The man stopped, but continued to face the other way. "What's your name?"

"Charles" he responded shortly. And with that, he walked away.


	17. Look At Us

_(A/N) Oh boy, oh boy… The Great Procrastinator Withered Rose is actually back… Does it really help to apologize for disappearing? Probably not… Summer was atrocious and depressing, but I'm going to use the completion of this fanfic as a steppingstone for getting myself back into writing. This is the end of my healing period, so bear with me! And wish me luck because the last time I checked, this story was going NOWHERE. By the way, very short chapter here. Don't kill me._"

Do you really think he'll go see Mom?" Iris asked. It was just her and Kane now, camping out peacefully in the cave that separated the Kanto region from the Johto region. This was Tohjo Falls, part of a massive stretch of mountainous area that split the country into the two regions. There was no way around or over it, especially since it was pitch-black outside, so Iris and Kane resorted to going through the cave together. It wasn't so bad at all, seeing as many trainers from everywhere used this path; there were no dangers here.

Kane nodded his head in response to Iris' question. He was curled up comfortably on a large, flat rock, his tail being the only light in the cave. He was tired, but couldn't help but keep a careful eye on Iris laying on the ground below. She used her bag as a pillow, and Kane's flame kept her warm enough so that she didn't need a blanket. The only sound that could be heard was that of the waterfall pouring from a rocky ledge and emptying into a pool of water at the bottom. Beneath the surface of the clear, clean water, Magikarp and other types of fish pokemon could be seen swimming around.

"It's really quiet in here" said Iris. "It's so much better than being in the city. Too many people and nowhere to go to find some peace and quiet." Kane nodded his head again and growled lightly in response, still watching Iris carefully. He wasn't planning on falling asleep anytime soon until Iris fell asleep first. It only took her about ten minutes to fall asleep, seeing as they'd had a long day anyway, and so Kane curled up tighter and fell asleep with came, and the only way Iris could tell was because of the streaks of bright sunlight shining in through the roof of the cave; it made the surrounding pool of water glisten. She sat up slowly, feeling the effects of sleeping for a full night on nothing but stone. She yawned loudly and stood up, and Kane began waking up as well.

"We need to keep moving" she said, picking up her bag off of the ground. "If you want, you can go back in your pokeball." Kane nodded, feeling too drowsy to travel at the moment. Iris returned him to his poke ball and put it safely on her belt with the rest of them, and then she moved on. The cave was no longer than a quarter mile's worth of a trip, and she very soon found herself back outside in the summer sunshine. It was slightly cloudy today, but otherwise beautiful. She headed down a grassy hill and to an empty field where there was a lake. This would be the only way from here into Johto, and it would also be her very first time ever stepping foot into this region.

* * *

At home, miles away from Tohjo Falls, it was peaceful. It was just Delilah and Rose, and their pokemon Amethyst. The little skunk was currently curled up in Kane's old favorite seat in the living room, snoozing lightly and twitching in her sleep. The day started out quite average, with Rose making French toast and eggs for breakfast. After cleaning up vigorously, the rest of the morning was spent trying to find something on television to watch.

"I hope Iris is okay" Rose said for what may have been the tenth time since her daughter had left. "I mean, I trust her judgment while she's out traveling away from home, but this whole thing with Team Rocket always has me worried. You know what they're capable of doing."

"And nothing will stop them from doing their thing" said Delilah. "They may never disappear for good, but that doesn't mean everyone should go into hiding forever. This is a pretty big region alone, never mind all the other regions Iris will be traveling. There isn't a very good chance she'll run into a lot of trouble. The best thing you can do is call her once in a while to make sure she's alright. Besides, she has her pokemon and like you said, she has good judgment."

"True." Rose shifted in her seat, uncomfortable from sitting in the same spot for so long. "Ugh, today is already so boring… I hate my days off, and I hate when Richard is gone."

"You have me" Delilah responded as she wrapped an arm around her lover.

"That's the thing. You're always here, so I can't ever miss you. I miss Richard. He's like a father to Iris, but he's only ever here on the holidays."

"… Did you hear that?" Delilah asked, turning her head toward the front door.

"Footsteps" said Rose in a whisper. She stood up. "Someone's near the house."

"Wait, I'll go." Delilah stood up and headed for the door, throwing it open quickly with her hand rested on her pokeball belt.

"Now what I would like to know is why you have to be so paranoid all the time" said Gary Oak's voice. He stood in the doorway with a somewhat amused look on his face, looking down at Delilah's shaking hand reaching for a pokeball.

She let out a breath of air. "We've been having a lot of scares lately, and somehow this household ends up a target in Team Rocket's crosshairs. What are you doing here anyway?"

"Actually, the boys and I were thinking about taking a little vacation" said Gary. He looked behind Delilah at Rose, who was still standing. "The Hoenn region is awesome around this time."

"Hoenn?" asked Delilah. "That sounds pretty good actually. I bet it's hot as hell out there. But that would be worth it, taking a vacation away from all this. What do you think Rose? You need a way to relax anyway."

"Sure, that sounds great!" Rose said happily. "I would just need to write up the days I'll be gone from work."

"Alright" said Gary. "Then it's settled. A day to pack would be enough, and then we're going to get a bus to pick us up here to bring us to Vermilion City. I guess they have this new system where you can call up the bus company, pay up the money with a credit card, and then have it come to your house to pick you up. It beats spending a couple days on pokemon-back trying to get to where you're going."

Delilah smiled her usually smirk, and then bid Gary goodbye. Once the door was shut, she went over to Rose and hugged her. "This would be so great for us" she said. "There's a lot out in Hoenn you've never seen before. You'd love it."

"I just hope we're safe out there…" said Rose with unease.

_(A/N) Can you say "filler"? This isn't my best work, but I needed something to stick in there after the awkward silence. And it wasn't going to be a full chapter until I was sure of what I was doing. Don't worry, I'll make the next few chapters extra special._


	18. The Dance

"Did you see this Delilah?" Rose asked incredulously. She had in her hand a magazine, opened to an article all about the S.S. Tidal and its journey from the Hoenn region to the rest of the world. On the page beside it was a detailed map of its path of voyage.

Delilah came over to where Rose was standing in the middle of the kitchen, a spatula in one hand and the magazine in the other. "What about it?" asked Delilah as she leaned over the other woman's shoulder.

"Look at how much a single ticket is for this trip! It's 300 dollars just for one person. A two-way ticket, but still…"

"Rose… We HAVE the money for this trip. We have a pretty good amount of money in the bank. I won a lot from competitions on the road, and your work also helps it along. It won't kill us to spend a little extra on ourselves, which is something we don't do a lot of."

Rose sighed and threw the magazine onto the counter. "It's still a lot of money. And being so far away from home, when I'm always used to being here…"

Delilah laughed. "You worry too much. You're gonna need this trip, to loosen you up." Rose gave her a strange look.

The remainder of the day, which was going by quickly, was spent packing and planning and making sure everything was set. Rose made absolute sure that her brand-new pokemon Amethyst came on the journey with them to share the experience. When they were sure that they were fully ready with suitcases in hand, the two of them headed out the doors and were greeted with the large silver bus that was to take them to Vermilion City. Their bags went onto the roof of the bus and when they stepped inside, they discovered that the bus was actually more like a Winnebago. Gary was sitting in the back area where the beds were, sipping on a can of soda and watching something on the small TV set.

"Welcome!" Gary said as he raised his can to the women. "I forgot to tell you that this wasn't just some regular bus that was gonna take us."

"I love it" said Rose as she sat next to Aron, who was busy playing on his handheld Nintendo. "And I haven't seen you guys in a while."

"Uh? Oh, yeah" Aron grunted. "Been a while." He remained focused on his current game playing. He hadn't changed a bit since the last time they had seen each other.

Damien stuck his head out from the top bunk and looked down at Rose. His hair was a bit longer now, and dyed a strange black and neon green color. It hung around his face messily. "We bought a shit-load of energy drinks and snacks" he said. "We'll be good for a month." He grinned.

"So anyway" Gary interrupted. "I should let you know that this boat trip is gonna take about three days, and I planned the trip for today 'cause it's the only day of the year it comes into the harbor."

"July thirteenth?" asked Rose. She stroked the bristly fur on Amethyst, who was curled up in her lap comfortably.

"Tourists, obviously" said Delilah. "This is around the time when the weather is nicest. And since you probably don't know, this boat goes from Vermilion City to Slateport City and that's in the far southern area of the region. So the ship has to go around half the island before we reach our destination, which is why the trip is so long." Rose nodded her head comprehensively. "But it's worth it, plus you love the sea."

This brought back memories of Rose's journey through the Kanto region long ago, when she had met the Lapras named Tempest. Since beginning her new life with a child and a home and a job, Rose had no time to travel. Celadon City was also very far from any ocean, so she wouldn't have been able to visit Tempest anyway. But the pokemon held a very special place in her heart, and she hoped every day that she was doing well for herself. Already, it had been sixteen years since they had seen each other. As Rose began to get lost in her thoughts more and more, she thought about how she had first met Delilah and when the whole journey began. It all started with just a simple favor from Professor Oak, and from there she met new friends, saw new places, and even found love. Now that she thought about it, she hadn't seen the professor since her first year away from home.

"You think too much" Delilah said as she broke through the train of thoughts.

"Oh, mostly thinking about the past" said Rose as she continued stroking Amethyst.

"I could tell. You looked like you were absentmindedly playing a little air guitar over there." Rose simply sighed and laid down on the bed.

Damien stuck his head into Rose's bunk, to the point where he was almost dangling upside-down. "You'll love this trip" he said. "Think about how hot it is in Johto right now in July and then add ten degrees." He laughed at the face Rose made at this. "The beaches are awesome, the people are awesome, and in this region they hold competitions that they don't have anywhere else. Well… except in Sinnoh. But it's cold as all hell up there."

"Did you drink too much Monster again?" asked Rose, laughing.

"I might have" said Damien with a smirk. "But anyway, they have these competition for… I guess you could say 'style'. They judge you on how your pokemon performs moves in front of a crowd, and you can win some valuable ribbons. It's crazy what they got going on over there. Free entry too."

"You act like you been there dude" said Aron, who had finally put down his game system to grab a drink out of the fridge.

Damien looked at the other man, and then mumbled "Well… I saw it online…"

The bus ride went on for what seemed like days, and Rose spent the entirety of the trip staring out the small window next to her bed. She watched the blur of the trees race by, almost forcing herself into a trance from it. From time to time her mind did indeed drift, and it was mainly the same thoughts over and over again. She couldn't stop thinking about Tempest, knowing she would be on and around so much water. No matter what happened, she told herself, she would try to call out to the pokemon when she had the chance. It had been years, and she needed to see her at least one more time.

At long last, the bus reached its destination point and came to a slow stop in front of the Vermilion City harbor. Rose was the first to step out and grab her bags, and she took a moment to take in the view of the ocean and feel the salty, cool breeze that came with it. This place brought back many memories from so long ago. Delilah came up behind her and gave her a questioning but worried look, only to have it shrugged off as Rose continued down the dock to where the S.S. Tidal was waiting for the five of them. Amethyst hobbled along as fast as she could with Rose's comparatively longer strides, stopping once in a while to sniff the ground. She looked up at Rose and tilted her head curiously, as this had been her first time traveling anywhere further than several blocks.

"Here we are," said Delilah happily, "and there's the ship." Up ahead, past the double doors of the building at the end of the dock, there was an enormous silver ship waiting for any tourists heading to the Hoenn region. The S.S. Tidal was at least twice as large as the S.S. Anne, which came to Vermilion City once a day. There were a few dozen people on the upper balcony of the ship, looking out over the railing and watching the rest of the tourists get on board. Rose stepped up onto the platform that everyone else was using to get on, and she was ordered to take a left to where the cabins were. Amethyst scurried into the first door she saw open, and hopped onto the full-sized bed in the center of the room. Rose followed and then Delilah, who shut the door behind her. Gary and the others would be staying in their own cabins nearby.

"I'm a little nervous" said Rose as she found a place for her bags. "This would be the furthest I've ever traveled, and I don't even know what to expect. It's like a whole other world in the south."

"But the weather is beautiful and there's a lot to see" said Delilah. "It's good to go out to places that are completely different from where we live. It helps us embrace other cultures, you know?" She sat down on the bed and began searching through her bag for something.

Rose sat down as well, looking out the small window nearby. She could see the front of the ship, and all the people walking around. It was weird being around so many people she didn't know - she had lived in Celadon City for so long that she knew most of the people who came to the department store or who were often found taking a daily stroll with their pokemon. Even for an enormous city, it was always the same people every day. Sometimes there were young trainers that came and went as they traveled the region to obtain their badges, but almost all of them were never seen again.

"This is what I was looking for, by the way" said Delilah as she pulled out a writing book with some pokemon decorating the cover. She tossed it to Rose unexpectedly, breaking her from her trance as usual. "I figured since you always have a lot of emotion built up, writing it all down would help out a lot. And it's good to keep a journal when you travel. You never know what you might find that you would never in your life want to forget."

"That's… very thoughtful" said Rose, surprised. She flipped through the brand-new pages and then looked on the back. The three starter pokemon from the Johto region were shown, one of which was the Totodile that seemed to be looking right at Rose. She traced the black outline of its body with the tips of her fingers. "Thank you."

"Ah, no problem" said Delilah as she wrapped an arm around Rose. "I'm here to help, just like when we were kids."

"You mean when I was a kid" said Rose. "You were much older than me."

"But could you tell?"

"No, and most people would find that to be creepy."

Delilah chuckled. "But I could tell you were into me from the start."

"I don't think 'into you' is the correct choice of words" Rose responded. "Besides, you used to piss me off more than help me out."T

his time, Delilah let out a full laugh. "You always hurt the ones you love, right? I think that's how it goes."

"Yeah, maybe on the playground" said Rose with a chuckle. She grabbed a pillow and threw it at Delilah, tossing aside the notebook as she grabbed another one to defend herself.

Daylight turned into starry, cloudless night, and by then Rose and Delilah had seen all there was to see on the ship. There was a buffet downstairs, and Rose wasted no time in indulging herself in some high-quality sushi - this was the first time she had eaten it from somewhere other than a store-bought package. After that, the two of them went to the adjoining lounge with a very calming atmosphere. The lights were dimmed and there were some dark purple couches around the room. There was even a jukebox and a billiards table.

"I love the color" said Rose as she practically drifted over to one of the couches. Exploring the ship and all it had to offer left her in an almost dream-like state, and she honestly couldn't remember the last time she was this happy. She sat down on a couch and watched the few people in the room talking and having a grand old time.

"Hey, isn't your name Delilah?" a voice said from across the room. A tall woman in bright clothing, with strange silvery-blue hair, walked up to Rose and Delilah.

"Uh, yeah" responded Delilah hesitantly. "And I think I've actually seen you somewhere."

"I'm Karen, one of the Elite Four members" said the woman. "I heard about you, and how you pitted yourself up against Will. Normally trainers leave the Elite Four unfinished because they weren't up to par with that level of experience. Your case, deary, was very interesting."

"I was embarrassed, actually" said Delilah. "I'm not sure I'd be able to enter the competition again. Not any time soon at least."

Karen smiled with an almost devious look in her silvery eyes. "And to think I've seen it all, with what I've been through. I would recommend trying again though. You seem like a very capable trainer. Just because one pokemon is out of line does not make you an overall terrible trainer. Trust me, I read people very well. Your pokemon simply did not want to listen, and it is in their nature as a wild animal to defy humankind if they wish. You can't control nature all the time."

Delilah could only nod in response. Rose stared in disbelief, looking the woman up and down as if trying to figure out whether or not she were real. This would be one of very few times that Rose had ever met anyone more than a run-of-the-mill trainer. This was someone who had been through years of traveling, much like Delilah had, and became good enough to make it into the Elite Four. This woman battled Elite trainers, and then became one herself.

"Is there a problem?" Karen asked.

"I-I, um, no. Sorry." Rose stuttered. "Your clothes are interesting though." She mentally smacked herself in the forehead for such a lame response.

"I specialize in dark types. The essential strategy is deception in my battles. You wouldn't be able to tell what sort of pokemon I use in battle by my appearance alone. I teach my opponents a valuable lesson in paying attention to more than just the exterior."

"I would have loved to take up the challenge" said Delilah. "You seem like a great trainer."

Karen smiled again. "I'll be waiting. And yes, I do expect you to come back and try again. I'd be disappointed to find out a trainer with such outstanding abilities turned down a chance for a rise to fame. Right now I'm taking a vacation in the Hoenn region, but I hope to see you once the Pokemon League opens back up. I'm sure we will meet again before then, however." With that being said, she turned away and headed back out onto the deck of the ship without waiting for a response.

Delilah turned to Rose and smirked. "Over ten years and you're still socially awkward" she said.

"Shut up" Rose said with a laugh.

As the night went on, the two women eventually found themselves at the front deck of the boat where Japanese-style paper lanterns decorated the metal rails and some music was playing over a loudspeaker. Couples were joined in the center of it all, dancing the night away with only the lanterns and some Ledian to provide light. Rose realized that the people here were ballroom dancing.

"I want to teach you something I bet you didn't know I knew" said Delilah. She took Rose by the hand and led her to the dance floor. "Now stand in front of me like this." She put her hands on Rose's hips and guided her to the correct position.

"What are we doing…?" asked Rose skeptically.

"The foxtrot" said Delilah. "It's common in ballroom dancing, and easy."

"Where in the world did you learn this?" asked Rose as she placed her hands where Delilah guided them. "This doesn't seem like your sort of thing."

"You ask too many questions… Now time your steps to the beat of the song and follow me. That foot forward," she pointed, "and then my foot goes with it. Yup, that's it. And then do it two more times. So it's… No, that foot. One, two, three. Then turn like this on the third step." She switched the direction so that the two of them were moving in almost a circle.

"This is easy enough" said Rose with slight hesitation in her voice. "But it's still weird. I don't dance."

"Get used to it hun" said Delilah. On one of the turns, Delilah dipped Rose low to the floor with one arm. "At least you trust me enough not to drop you."

Rose smiled brightly. "Of course I trust you." She reached her arms up around Delilah neck and kissed her deeply.

The others who were dancing, and the ones who were merely watching, applauded softly as they saw the couple kiss under the light of the fireflies. They continued to dance the night away, and then headed back to their cabins to get some sleep.

_Looking back on the memory of  
The dance we shared beneath the stars above  
For a moment all the world was right  
How could I have known that you'd ever say 'goodbye'?_

And I, I'm glad I didn't know  
The way it all would end  
The way it all would go  
Our lives are better left to Chance  
I could have missed the pain  
But I'd have had to miss the dance  


* * *

  
(A/N) _Updates will be slow, but they are coming! So don't fret. Right now I'm trying to find some steady ground, and figure out where I'm going with this. You'll notice that I'm often not reaching my usual quota of at least 3,000 words per chapter, but that's only so I can prevent writer's block. I want to finish this, I just don't know how to get to that point. Yet._


	19. The long awaited update

_It's been so long since I've even looked at anything I've written for this fanfic. I've grown up a lot and there's been a lot of changes in my life._

_I want to finish this story so bad. This is the best series I've ever written - this and In the End. Actually, it's the only series I've written. Everything else either fell apart or ended up simply being one-shots._

_I've had ideas for the direction I want this story to go, and so far it's not even halfway done._

_Here's where I tell you what you've all been waiting for: I'll finish it. It's taken a few years, but I don't want this particular series to just stop. Both this and the prequel mean a lot to me, as Rose is supposed to be based off of myself. I had a lot of fun writing it, and I loved seeing that every review was nothing but positive feedback and encouragement to continue. I just need time to get some things out of the way, and I need to find time in between work, so I can sit down and maybe type up a few new chapters. I'm not sure if it'll be the same, since there's such a huge gap between the updates, but I'll still try to get something up soon._

_You may have noticed already, but I've changed my pen name. I didn't know I could, but this one is a user name/email I use for just about everything on the internet._

_Also, since I obviously tend to ignore this site and my notifications from it, feel free to ask me for a way to contact me. Tumblr, Twitter, Facebook... Whatever is easiest for you. Hell, I'll even give you my PS3 name if that's the only way you can get a hold of me (Skyrim. All day. Every day. I'll definitely respond.)_

_Thank you loyal readers... It's been wonderful to see that there are people out there eager to see my written work._

_-Blue._


End file.
